Punks on Mars is the "glitterpunk" project of Ryan Howe, who has also performed with similarly minded lo-fi pop bands like Greatest Hits, Luke Perry, and dANA. A shiny, catchy fusion of '60s British Invasion, '70s punk and glam, '80s power pop, and '90s lo-fi elements, Punks on Mars' self-titled debut album arrived in 2011 on Howe's Ratgum label, and spent equal time with interstellar mood pieces and fizzy pop songs. Early in 2012, Howe returned with the sharply written Hey! Tiffany single; that July, the People Talk single became Punks on Mars' most polished-sounding work yet, a trend that continued on Bad Expectations, which arrived that October. ~ Heather Phares