Katja Nielsen of Arre! Arre! has surfaced as She/Beast with a new EP. The release is heavy in the best sense of the word. And, while it seems like yet another excellent offering on the PNKSLM label, it's also an indication of a considerable talent from one of the imprint's existing bands.
"Bad Advice", the opener on This Too Shall Pass, is girl group stuff as mixed with post-punk, a grubby recasting of pop, while "Oh, Darkness" takes that one step further. Like "Leader of the Pack" as written by Bauhaus, the cut's a delicious shot of dark energy. Elsewhere, "Stings Like a Bee", with its great lyric, "life's given me honey, but it stings like a bee", is more lovely, even as "My Worst Enemy" and "Give Me Your Remedy" work in funk elements to the dark-wave rock. Cathartic and still catchy, everything here works in the fashion of Eighties Siouxsie and I can think of no higher praise than that.
This Too Shall Pass is out on PNKSLM today.
[Photo: Milkdrop Studio]