The 69 Eyes

Nice guys really do Finnish last. While they look like Mötley Crüe and sport names of Gunther Toody waiters — Archie, Bazie, Timo-Timo — the 69 Eyes are more like the Helsinki version of Fields of the Nephilim. The song "Los Angeles," from their Angelsalbum, explains it all — the Doors' "L.A. Woman" working the Sisters of Mercy's "Detonation Boulevard." Everything else is merely a natural variation. The Raw Power-era Iggy Pop fits as seamlessly as a nicked Mission U.K. melody. Singer Jyrki 69 growls and warbles like Andrew Eldritch seducing a nubile victim. The lyrics are more touch-base than profound, but surprises like the inspiring "Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams" make amends. "Rocker" is a sendup so steeped in bravado that true Heshers will miss the irony, and hipsters will supplement the devil sign with the phrase "I'm a rocker/A goddamn rocker/That's right!"