The Muffs
Long before Hole, Come, L7, or Babes in Toyland, L.A. songwriter Paula Pierce and her backing band, the Pandoras, were assaulting listeners with a grungy mix of female rage, growling guitars, and screaming vocals. Now, two veteran Pandoras--Kim Shattuck and Melanie Vammen--have formed a group of their own called the Muffs and released an invigorating self-titled album. Like the Pandoras, the Muffs draw inspiration from early '60s garage bands, but their album isn't mired in the low-tech/no-tech production values that made the former group's records nearly unlistenable. Producers Rob Cavallo and David Katznelson give The Muffs a larger-than-life sound that emphasizes the Ramones-like drumming and relentless rhythm guitars, and Shattuck and Vammen score big with the simple hooks and sassy attitude of songs such as "Lucky Guy," "Saying Goodbye," and "Big Mouth." You'd have to reach all the way back to Blondie's Plastic Letters to find punkish power pop this endearing.--Jim DeRogatis