The Stolen Minks preview

The Stolen Minks
Darkroom, Chicago
Sunday, November 2, 2008

I put The Stolen Minks’ High Kicks (New Romance For Kids) into the CD player to listen while perusing the band’s press interviews, liner notes (nonexistent), and other “important materials” us rock critics use to judge a band’s worth, but a funny thing happened: By the time I surfed to the Minks’ Myspace page, the album was damn near over!

The 10 songs on High Kicks (the band’s follow up to 2006’s Family Boycott) total 22 minutes but feel more like 15. Erica Butler, Rachelle Goguen, Stephanie Johns, and Tiina Johns don’t waste a note, chord, beat, or vocal on songs like “Get Wet” (an epic for the Halifax, Canada group, clocking in at 3:03!), “North End Strangler,” or “Consecutives,” one of a few tracks that doesn’t eclipse 1,000 beats per minute.

Despite its girl-pop makeup/background, there’s not even necessarily a lot of melody or hooks on High Kicks, but interestingly enough, it doesn’t necessarily matter. The sweaty, grimy, dank-basement (or Darkroom) intensity is enough. If you’re looking for local comparisons, consider The Dials (with shorter attention spans) or Reptoids . . . without the Slayer kick.

Hidden Mitten and The Cathy Santonies open; this is an early, 7 p.m. show.

— Trevor Fisher

Category: Stage Buzz, Weekly