8mm

That Justin Timberlake sure has some nerve. Before trying to record a song as brazen as “Sexyback,” he should’ve checked out what Juliette Beavan and her band, 8mm, were bringing to the party with their debut full-length, Songs to Love and Die By (one of the first bands, incidentally, to be released on Blackpool Lights’ local label, Curb Appeal Records). In fact, there’s really no comparison — the slinky, sultry Beavan is the definition of sexiness. Sure, there are her looks, and from the album’s cover to the band’s Web page, it’s clear that the blond-haired, long-legged, scantily clad Beavan is being marketed just as much as her music. But it’s her sultry vocals, poured over muted guitars and trip-hop atmosphere, that give Songs a Rilo Kiley-covering-Massive Attack kind of feel. Much like a steamy night in the back of a darkened limousine, this album is so sexy, you’ll crave a postcoital cigarette when it’s over. I could be your everything if you let me, Beavan pleads on “Stunning,” one of the album’s best tracks. She won’t have to ask twice.