THE FLESH Issue #32

Firetower

By Chris Pacifico
Published: June 1st, 2007 | 12:00am

The Flesh seems as if it comes out of few different worlds: your sister’s bedroom circa 1986 as she’s dressing up in her pastel ruffled clothing; a climatic scene in a John Hughes film somewhere in Shermer, Illinois; or a decadent party from a Bret Easton Ellis novel.

Led by the flinty coo of keyboardist Gabriella Zappia, this Brooklyn crew dishes out voguish, ’80s post-punk-pop with Zappia singing like Pat Benatar’s strut in the “Love is a Battlefield” video. The title track is a spunky and sexy girl-group cache. The fist-pumping, us-against-the-world chorus of “World to Come” made MTV’s salad days gleam with infectious ditties.

Zappia has moments where yearning and heartbreak are spun into delightful, melodious executions; at others she’s sauntering around a club looking to deliver a beating to the woman with whom her mans been two-timing her.

Firetower clocks in at just under a half hour with production that’s not too polished yet not too gritty. So does the album rule? Like, oh my god, totally!