The Heavenly States

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More About

• Ted Nesseth
• Ted Leo
• Stephen Malkmus
• Michael Stipe
• Punk Rock

There's a right way and a wrong way to add violin to a rock band, but if you put Oakland's Heavenly States to the test, they'd surely pass. For one thing, violinist Genevieve Gagon mixes things up with piano and synthesizer on many of the group's songs, but the fact that Black Comet, the States' latest, is one of the catchiest pop-rock albums of the year doesn't hurt, either. Imagine Ted Leo and the Starlight Mints jamming together with an angrier, hungrier Stephen Malkmus on vocals, then add horns, flutes and, of course, that violin -- and you'd still be only halfway there. The real key here is the near-psychotic Ted Nesseth, who, in spite of his cryptic, Michael Stipe-ian lyrics, makes these songs rip and roar so much that they'd be golden with only his voice and guitar. Fortunately, he's not solo: The raw, post-punk guitar romp of "Pretty Life" gets a boost from thumping tom drums and stuttering synthesizers, while shouts of "That's the big gun!" and a punchy guitar-violin combo turn "Vacant" into two of the poppiest minutes released this year. Heavenly.