Venus Luxure No. 1 Baby

Girls Against Boys: Scott McCloud (guitar, vocals); Eli Janney (samples, vocals, bass); Johnny Temple (bass); Alex Fleisig (drums).
Recorded at Oz Studios, Baltimore, Maryland in February 1993.
When Washington, D.C.'s SoulSide closed up shop, three-fifths of the band mutated into a darker, sexier beast as Girls Against Boys. Their second album, 1993's VENUS LUXURE NO. 1, introduced many to their unique sound. Though still powered by the might of rhythmic post-hardcore, their songs glistened like a lounge lizard's hair cream with the swagger of a pickup artist. Singer Scott McCloud's gritty voice imparts seductions and threats while the pummeling dual bass crawls along like fingers slowly drifting down a silk stocking. "Satin Down" lurches through dark alleys with death-march drums and a droning guitar building in subtle menace, while the fuzzy "Let Me Come Back" throws its weight around like a train full of hobos. Through it all, however, VENUS LUXURE manages to be attractive and heroic despite all the lurid trappings.