Inflation Kills

When his last band — volatile Hamilton math-rockers Kitchens & Bathrooms — called it quits, front-man Phil Williams claimed his next project would embrace a less antagonistic, more melodic sound. He was half-right as his new band’s eponymous debut is definitely moodier and more relaxed than K&B’s harsh post-punk missives, but The Inflation Kills’ rough edges are still jagged enough to draw blood. TIK know that hiding behind a wall of screeching feedback is no substitute for artful dissonance. On "Modern Hustler,” Williams and fellow guitarist Matt Fleming whip up a blizzard of damaged riffs while drummer Nick Daleo smashes his kit with near-homicidal vengeance. "Children” is a tense, Unwound-esque time bomb that threatens to explode at the slightest provocation, but instead teasingly keeps itself under wraps, building towards a crescendo that never comes. Elsewhere, the jumpy, propulsive cadences of "Reinvented Dance” are eventually sucked under by a whirlpool of noise and scuffed-up chords. The experimental parts somehow manage to hang together cohesively, moving briskly from one passage to the next without descending into masturbatory exhibitionism. Think of it as noise-rock for pop fans.