Mrs. Howl: 'Lovie & a Yellow Lamp'

It’s not difficult to see why Girl in a Coma’s Nina Díaz might take an interest in producing Dallas-to-SA transplants Mrs. Howl. The Elastica and Blondie comparisons aren’t unwarranted, but the debut Lovie & a Yellow Lamp recalls one of GIAC’s earliest demos recorded with Boz Boorer. Lovie’s sound is cleaner, but not necessarily any less raw. “One More Revolution” is straightforward, danceable, distorted rock — just a hair cleaner than a four-track. The marriage of Chelsea Dagger's disaffected vocals, Alfonso Mata’s stomping dance beat, and Laurel Dagger’s monster guitar riffs recall GIAC on “Race Car Driver.” Individually, Mrs. Howl’s players aren’t virtuosos, but Mata’s beats hit right in the hips and Chelsea’s voice falls just on her side of her influences. Meanwhile, Laurel's got a knack for big, ear-wormy licks as seen on “French Kiss” and “Lovie.” The latter is a tribute to nights spent next to her yellow lamp, writing songs and listening to the sugary, dance-pop act Lovie, who Laurel credits for softening her pre-Howl work of various riot grrrl stylings. While Lovie is a bit too cloaked in its source material, Mrs. Howl are not far from carving their own piece of musical real estate.

★★★ (out of 5 stars)