Perfect Saviors

2021's saw the deliberately inexplicable Detroit art-punk collective exploring the remote outskirts of the mainstream. That bit of sonic reconnaissance yielded some fascinating yet impenetrable results, as the band tried to have their cake and eat it by spending equal capital on obfuscation and catharsis. The aptly named remedies those ills with gusto, administering a near-perfect distillation of the group's metallic maximalist pop that swaps discord for fist-pumping arena rock. To be fair, -- Fight Club-leaning gym rats with the anarcho-punk soul and self-importance of -- have always been a band for the people. Over the years, their perceived exclusiveness has helped shape their cult status, but aims to widen the net with songs that are both adrenalizing and accessible. Opener "Sport of Measure" plays it coy, presenting as a pretty, indie rock chamber piece before dissolving into a glitchy, comically compressed maelstrom, then on to soaring, -esque hardcore, all in under three minutes. Having taken the piss, so to speak, get down to business, delivering a volley of potent noise-punk rockers ("FKA World," "Clone," "Everything's Glitter") that temper their myriad technical complexities with sugary, boot-stomping melodies. Interspersed throughout are punchy, dancefloor-filling bangers ("Liar 2"), sleek, Berlin-era -style sophisti-pop gems ("Modern Vanity"), and even an acoustic ballad ("In Heaven"). , former guitarist , ' , and 's and all add spice to the proceedings, but it's themselves -- still defiantly cultish yet no longer faceless entities -- that bear the weight. ~ James Christopher Monger