Smashing riot grrrl into girl-group doo-wop is hardly new: Bikini Kill did it from the off, and this young California quartet are a mere syllable away from England’s retro punk poppers the Pipettes. Still, it’s a reliably explosive formula, and despite questionable structural integrity as a band (four members lost in as many years of existence), their second album reveals a rock-solid west coast pop-punk spine, the skanking likes of Stop and Go exuberantly announcing them heirs to No Doubt.
Unlike that band, the Regrettes didn’t take 10 years of gigging to break through. Signed to Warner early on, and shiny as a new penny, for them DIY is a flavour rather than a founding principle. Frontwoman Lydia Night’s decision to appear alongside Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong on rightwing edgelord Morrissey’s recent covers album also suggests she hasn’t quite got all her political ducks in a row yet.
Harum-scarum energy drowns out hand-wringing on the best songs, irresistibly sour-sweet as Tangfastics. I Dare You invokes fellow California girls Brody Dalle and Katy Perry amid shameless pop guitar licks. Fifteen tracks stretches them too far, though, and on the likes of Fog, their woahs sound tired, and it becomes apparent that these are pretty empty musical calories.
