Black Lips

After seven years, the Black Lips have evolved from a party band to a band serious about being a party band. Though their live shows are highly praised, and there’s hardly a dull moment on any of their records, one gets the sense that the Black Lips genuinely love music and respect their forefathers — they don’t lose sight of themselves trying to recreate the Seeds but they’re not as nonchalant as their reputation might have you believe. The Black Lips have the distinction of being a famously great live band that sound just as good under layers of studio manipulation. Though they’ve always had an amateurish charm, great production keeps their records worth paying for and keeping. At their core, the songs on Good Bad Not Evil are meant to be played in front of an audience and accompanied by wack job antics. But just when you think the band might only be good for producing fun rock’n’roll ephemera, they darken the mood or incorporate an influence or idea that you might not have predicted. You could argue that the worth of a rock band can be judged by their down-tempo numbers, and by this standard, the Black Lips make the grade — they’re versatile, though they never get serious enough to embarrass themselves. Good Bad Not Evil, true to form, is pretty hard to dislike.