The Coathangers | Larceny & Old Lace

Suicide Squeeze (2011)
By LIZ PELLY  |  June 22, 2011
3.0 3.0 Stars

OTR coathangers

The Coathangers' abrasiveness goes beyond their band name's graphic, backroom abortion reference: riot-grrrl shrieks, slap-in-the-face lyrics, and badass post-punk energy are all up front on their records. The Atlanta quartet's third full-length album — and their second for Seattle's Suicide Squeeze — sees them working with producer Ed Rawls (Deerhunter, Black Lips) to record their first studio album. It makes for their strongest work yet. Coming from a band that's previously released somewhat-silly ramshackle jams with names like "Nestle in My Boobies" and "Shut the Fuck Up," Larceny is a decidedly more mature endeavor with more varied songwriting. The most memorable hook is on "Go Away," a three-minute keyboard-heavy pop song with the to-the-point lyric: "Hey, you like it when I stay, but I want you to go away." The most interesting tracks, however, are the less instantly accessible ones: the more experimental psych-pop sway and whispery vox on "My Baby," or the surf-punk riffs and spooky keyboards of "Jaybird," a shrieking dedication to their former tour-mate Jay Reatard, who died in 2010. ("There's a hole, there's a hole where our hearts used to be," they sing.) The Coathangers started spontaneously as a party band in 2006, but Larceny makes clear that these girls are no fucking joke.
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