Serum

Dirty Girl Scout
by Chris Adams

Serum are one of the few Boston bands who have convinced me that my acclaimed “all local music eats pig-shit” theory might need an amendment or two (or at least one). Their live shows are always full-throttle, in-your-face entertainment, and their ever-increasing fanbase is testament to the fact that, even in these dark days, The Kids can still recognize a good thing when they hear it. Serum’s debut LP offers a subtler, more textural approach than their live assault, but is no less engaging. The main source of the album’s dynamic appeal lies in former Trojan Pony Siobhan McCauley, whose throaty, full-bodied vocal acrobatics are consistently a wonder to behold. On Dirty Girl Scout, she assumes a pantheon of roles, playing the spite-spitting rejected lover or the sharp-as-nails ice queen as convincingly as the sultry vamp or innocent seductress. And if sex still sells, than Serum are gonna break the bank. Quite a few of the songs are Spanish Fly in stereo, most notably “Baby Love” which features the “why-was-this-never-written-before?” lyric “Baby, you sure know how to fuck me.” “Sloe Candy” is equally… erm… moist, with its references to “sticky sweet candy,” sung in a mid-coital groan that’d make Caligula blush. (Serum is evidently aware of its sex appeal, as the inner sleeve of the CD case pictures a negative crotch-shot image.) The band itself support McCauley’s neurotic/erotic wails with a deftly lighthanded, moody ebb and flow that thankfully blends its art-rock proclivities with instantly memorable melodies and tight song structures. And, these days especially, it’s great to hear a band that’s still willing to transcend easy categorization and test style barriers. “NRG,” for example, is sorta space-age funk, while “Church of Elvis” would pass muster at Goth clubs nationwide. A great debut LP from a band who, if they play their hand well, could be the next Garbage.