Their live show is very immediate—it is visual with punk-like intensity, and matching outfits—and the stage antics have included dancing girls, sex-wrestling with finger paint, and a variety of other hi-jinks. With an outrageous and original style reminiscent of CBGB’s-era Blondie, The Rezillos, and modern acts like Hot Hot Heat, The Argument, and The Raveonettes, the band has created a sound that demands even the most jaded arms-crossed, shoe-gazing hipster to hit the dance floor and shake into a fucking frenzy to their glammed-out rock and roll stylings. Chicago’s Bang! Bang!has solved the decades-old dilemma of combining an addictively appealing persona with real musical substance. Although the concept of this “fashion-forward” co-ed 3-piece might seem akin to Brooklyn electro-clash at first glance, Bang! Bang! pulls ahead of that overly-saturated scene with over-the-top performance ability and uncanny musical prowess. Electric Sex (Bang! Bang!’s 1st release for Morphius) includes 6 songs & 2 videos that introduce “at-home” audiences to the comic-book styled personas of band members Gretta Fine and Jack Flash, whose erotic vocal pairing is complimented by captivatingly sex-charged lyrical content and nailed home by the bedroom backbeat of drummer Mike Wednesday. Yes, some of it is cheeky, but make no mistake—this is not a gimmick band. Bang! Bang!’s canvas jumps from straight rock’n’roll to explorations in rhythmic timing, yet their focus remains the creation of lasting pop—all of which is infused with a debauched nervous energy that permeates the simplicity of the music, exposing a hard-to-pinpoint “edge” that turns fun into something more compelling. This is a band with image but not one to let their songwriting be eclipsed by it, so style and substance coexist side by side in harmony. Despite Chicago’s reputation as a tough audience to crack, Bang! Bang! was almost instantly accepted by the local scene from their start in! early 2003, including a rapid succession of opening slots for Les Savy Fav, Bobby Conn, OK Go, The Gossip, Modey Lemonand many others. In just six months, they had become a household name in Chicago, and began headlining weekends at Chicago’s best clubs, including Empty Bottle, Double Door, Abbey Pub& Metro. Soon thereafter, the band got an unexpected lift from a license deal that put their early cut “High Speed Romance“ on a Copper Label sampler, three million copies of which were distributed free in the U.S. last year. Since then the band has garnered press and high praise for their high energy live show and self-released “Do You Like It” EP from publications such as Chicago Reader, New City, Venus, The Onion, Time Out Chicago, and even The Chicago Sun-Times. Contemporary yet campy, sultry and self-consciously a little silly, Bang! Bang!‘s “Electric Sex” will entice with its Coffee, Tea, or Mecomic book punk rock antics. Zippers will strain and seams will split as this raucous selfdescribed “sex rock” trio barrels through musical offerings like “Candy Stop” and the artful-but-naughty title track. It’s time to get dirty with Bang! Bang!
