Visqueen

Pop and punk go together like sugar and spikes. Seattle trio Visqueen exemplifies this maxim. Bassist Kim Warnick spent over two decades with the Fastbacks proving that speedy, hook-intensive punk can make you hum while flinging limbs and unloading adrenaline in the mosh pit. Her veteran smarts jell sparklingly with relative youngsters Rachel Flotard (guitars, vocals) and Ben Hooker (drums) on their debut, King Me. Flotard sings like a hungry Liz Phair over lean, swift buzz bombs of punk-pop. King Me‘s ten songs zip by in a blur of bruise-purple melodies and denim-shredding low end, taking a mere 27 minutes out of your busy life. Visqueen’s steez will ring familiar bells with anyone cognizant of the Muffs, Fastbacks, Donnas, or Ramones, but Flotard’s knack for soaring choruses and her appealing pipes make this old wine in a new bottle damned intoxicating nonetheless. That annoying sound you’ll hear at tonight’s gig is major-label A&R folk whipping out checkbooks.