Eternal Youth
The Future Bible Heroes' first full-length since 1997'sMemories of Loveis a loose concept album about the undead and other everlasting life forms. Designed to appeal to indie rockers and club kids alike, the band features three complementary talents. Wordsmith Stephin Merritt (Magnetic Field,6ths,Gothic Archies) remains endlessly quotable and droll. Chris Ewen's synth pop recalls a more tweeBauhausor a wittierCure. Finally, Claudia Gonson delivers the same kind of breathy vocals that broke hearts on the Magnetic Fields' 199969 Love Songsbox set. "I'm a Vampire" ought to be a dance-floor hit ("I am what I am / And I'm impossibly glam"). "The World Is a Disco Ball" posits that "we're little mirrors, one and all." These tunes are rich with comedic pathos, as well as romantic empathy.--Jillian Steinberger