Xposed 4Heads - Urgency Squad [Internal Combustion]

Coming in from the states is the newest longplay vinyl release put on the circuit by our Milwaukee-based friends of the Xposed 4Heads, a limited to 200 copies ten track LP which comes with an exquisite artwork and also includes the banging "System Overload" which we've already featured on these pages earlier this month videowise. Released via the Internal Combustion label the musical joyride starts with "Push Me", a marching, UK-influenced amalgamation of straight forward Rock and Stadium Wave, goes into the praised "System Overload" before presenting the albums title track "Urgency Squad" which qualifies as a quite fascinating mixture of full throttle WavePunk, a bluesy touch and vintage synths providing captivating, The Munsters-like background scores whilst "Slack It" dabbles with a tongue-in-cheek 80s Miami Pop attitude on high speed mode musicwise, adds a bit of Dada'esque fun here and there whilst paying homage to classic Rock'n'Roll in its vocal presentation and "Humans Are OK" clearly indicates that they are not - at least this what the aliens think that were in invlvd in the songs most beautiful space string arrangements and catchy melody work underlining the tunes overall melancholia. Flipping the wax we are the "Fly In The Ointment" and turn every (No)Wave / UK Indie floor into a sweet riotous place, we "Light It Up!" with a muscular PostPunk / DiscoPunk / P-Funk attitude that brings fans of the B-52s as well as those following the late DC Recordings label to the dancefloor, surprising them with an epic breakdown sequence whereas "Our Number Is One" caters a similar, yet slightly more of a slick, radio friendly 80s feel for the sophisticated listener. Furthermore the "Next Thing" is a big one in terms of more Miami Synth melodies and big time panorama Pop with an edge and the concluding short instrumental sketch "For People, Not Consumers" evokes memories of corporate production music for a reason and therefore provides a nice addition to the albums overall presence of lyrical criticism of the modern hypercapitalist society. Good stuff, this.