Read Between the Lines

iTunes Review

The five precocious Los Angeleno teenage girls of KSM can actually play their instruments. That’s right; they’re a bona fide band. If you think most modern day kids’ pop sounds the same — ok, a lot of it does sound the same, but not all — listen and you’ll hear new-wave tinged hints of the Go-Go’s and the Bangles in some of these tunes (albeit heavily filtered through some of that Disney-glossed Miley Cyrus or Jonas Brothers-sounding production). But tweens finding their footing in this wonderfully overwhelming world of musical taste could certainly do a lot worse. “Don’t Rain On My Parade” opens with splashes of reggae guitar before bursting into a punchy chorus. Singer Shelby Cobra’s squeaky voice sounds better on the title track (a shopping mall hit waiting to happen), while “Permission to Party” gets a bit more edgy — but not so much that you’ll have to worry about any bad kids showing up to the party with booze or “jazz cigarettes.” Even their bubbly cover of “I Want You to Want Me” is pretty much devoid of the libidinous intent that drives the power-pop original by Cheap Trick. Gateway pop? Like, totally.