Futureworld
On Trans Am's fourth full-length release, the instrumental trio from Washington, D.C., refine their particular convergence of rock-oriented guitar vocabularies and '80s-influenced electronica. While Philip Manley, Nathan Means, and Sebastion Thomson joyfully grind out aggressive rhythms with loud, whip-smart guitar chords, they are equally adept at creating an android-funk milieu with vintage synthesizers and modulated vocals. Borrowing heavily from the robotic sound of synthesizer groups such as Kraftwerk,Futureworldis a diverse musical project that accommodates modern technology as well as the need to thrash on guitars, bass, and drums.--Mitch Myers