Art Brut - Art Brut vs. Satan

Recorded with Frank Black in what is a rare production outing for the Pixies frontman, punk outsiders Art Brut have retained the rambunctious energy and endearingly ramshackle vocal arrangements of their first two outings on third album Art Brut vs. Satan. However, they have also evolved their two-tone musical palette in order to create a musical backdrop that can cope with the more emotionally complex lyrical subject matter. Frontman Eddie Argos's forte has always been documenting his inability to negotiate life and his record collection, and the album doesn't deviate much from this theme; however, there's an added pathos in the recurring idea that our hero is simply getting too old for his lifestyle. In expanding their horizons while sticking to their comic strengths, Art Brut have sidestepped the junior jinx and established themselves as being capable of nurturing a career. Satan ought to be running scared.