ALBUM REVIEW: “Splendor Squalor” by Xray Eyeballs

Xray Eyeballs
Splendor Squalor
[Kanine Records]

Xray Eyeballs’ second album, Splendor Squalor, has so many dirty/stylish Brooklyn hallmarks, where to begin? The magnetic girl/boy vocals, the Cure-ish guitar snaps, and the seething Gothic undertones create a mixed orgy of street-wise influences.

Throughout the album, tension seems to be the overriding theme. Xray Eyeballs should change their Facebook status because the message in “X” is that it’s complicated. The push-pull dynamic in any relationship is an awesome force to reckon with, making this song the album’s standout track.

So in reality, what we have is a kinetic confluence of Blank Dogs and the Crystal Stilts. Splendor Squalor perhaps bridges that holy river of new wave punk and ’60s psychedelic voodoo, but I can’t help but feeling more empty than flush in the face with satisfaction.