The Pack A.D.

Three albums deep and Vancouver, BC duo the Pack A.D. still have the blues. Their latest record, We Kill Computers, stalls from the outset with "Deer," which buries singer Becky Black's seductively rough lilt, getting caught in the headlights of underwhelming repetition. However, the two-piece quickly recover thanks to "Everyone Looks like Everyone," which brings Black's vocals to the forefront, where they thankfully stay for the rest of the proceedings. Toeing blues and garage lines, and backed by Maya Miller's visceral stomping, the band are at their best when they go big, especially on "Cobra Matte" and "B.C. is on Fire," although "The Slow Down" proves an effective end-of-the-night, roadhouse-style slow burner. Relying heavily on dirty licks and sonorous rhythms, We Kill Computers does little to further the outfit's sound, though it does offer a collection of muscular, blues-inspired tracks, which is seldom a bad thing.