CRITIC'S CHOICE

Maids of Gravity, with Chaos Theory, Saturday, August 19, at Cricket on the Hill, features two members--vocalist/guitarist Ed Ruscha and guitarist Jim Putnam--who were part of Brad Laner's visionary band Medicine in 1991 and 1992. It should come as no surprise, then, that the Maids, represented by a groovy, self-titled debut recently issued on the Vernon Yard label, share with Laner's creation a fondness for loudness, feedback and pop melodies. But the Maids are no knockoff: The trio (filled out by a drummer who goes by the name Irwin) has a dreamy, Sixties-garage-band aesthetic all its own--a moody, atmospheric yet somehow charming approach to crafting tunes that linger in your head like hazy memories of better days. Spacey, yes, but earthlings will like it, too.