Epsilons

Album Review

The band name and album graphics, along with song titles like "Evil Robots" and "I Saw You on TV," give the impression that this Orange County foursome are part of the new wave/synth pop revival. However, while there are some surface affinities to the likes of the Epoxies or the Catch, Epsilons are, at heart, a garagey punk rock affair. Think Cramps or Pink Flag-era Wire, not Devo. Singer Ty Segall has an appealingly bratty whine of a voice that's equally well-showcased on lo-fi noise blasts like "Pantyhose" and marginally poppier Nuggets-style rockers like "Just Wanna Love You Girl." The songs are pared down to the barest essentials, with barely a third breaking the two-minute barrier and non-stop forward momentum being the key feature throughout the 27-minute running time. Epsilons is a good, trashy time, and only the most curmudgeonly of new wave old-timers will pick apart the songs to play Spot the Influence, but it's just a bit lightweight, and perhaps slightly too one-dimensional.