The Kills — Keep On Your Mean Side [reissue]

Keep On Your Mean Side [reissue]

Domino/Outside

Sheena Lyonnais (CHARTattack)

05/12/2009 11:26am

People who first heard of The Kills through their catchy dancefloor track "Cheap And Cheerful" need to familiarize themselves with their earlier work, because this shit is way better.

This re-released 2003 album has a gritty '60s/'70s feel thanks to being recorded on an eight-track recorder. It's provocative and filthy — the kind of rock that oozes sex and sin.

"Cat Claw" and "Fuck The People" boast a bad-ass punk attitude through bluesy lines and husky chain-smoking vocals. As much as 2008's Midnight Boom propelled The Kills' career, it came at the cost of their original dirty sound. Midnight Boom was their "modern album," the duo said in an interview, but Keep On Your Mean Side is their timeless album.

This version comes bearing five bonus tracks, including two Kills songs from previous EPs and three covers, all of which sound authentic. Though "The Search For Cherry Red" is by Jonathan Fire*Eater, these two do a fab job of making it their own.

The re-release of this album revives vintage rock and salutes the side of The Kills that dance-rock bars ignore.

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