Losing a key band member is an event that can kill any rock and roll band. With the departure of guitarist Nathan Thelen during the 2004 trek behind The New Romance, Pretty Girls Make Graves lost the dueling guitar sound that had defined much of the earlier work and live shows. They opted to add a replacement guitarist for only handful of live dates, and added a keyboardist (Leonna Mars, formerly of HintHint) for Elan Vital. Contrary to what you might be expecting, the addition of keyboards does not quite redefine the sound. Single and opener, "The Nocturnal House," drives with the same energy of Romance and 1999's Good Health. The bass plays a stronger role (as it does on many tracks), but the screeches of Derek Fudesco's vocals in the chorus clash with and complement Andrea Zollo's. Needless to say, Zollo can't screech like she used to. Instead of putting her voice at risk, Zollo has steadily made alterations, comes into her own on epics "Bullet Charm" and "Pearls on a Plate."Fudesco tales the lead on "Pictures of a Night Scene." Built around bass and piano - with avant garde horns heightening the drama at the end, it's probably my favorite song on the album. While the moves into a darker direction are quite interesting, attempts at achieving the energy from the previous records ("Domino," "The Magic Hour") do not quite fare as well. "Parade" is a rather dry call for the working poor to "strike." It would probably fit well into the theatrical version of Barbara Ehrenreich's Nickel and Dimed - but doesn't quite fit in here.
3.5 (out of 5)
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