The Kills - No Wow (2005)

On their sophomore release, the Kills come on like a post-punk version of Robert Mitchum in The Night of the Hunter--with "hate" tattooed on one hand, "love" on the other. Lyrics reference the two to the extent that there's even a song called "I Hate the Way You Love" (plus a slow version, "I Hate the Way You Love, Pt. 2"). Similarly, VV (Alison Mosshart) sings like a cross between PJ Harvey and Christina Martinez (Boss Hog). And yet, despite lines like, "Get the guns out" ("Love is a Deserter") and "Lost a lot of blood" ("At the Back of the Shell"), No Wow is too catchy to be a bummer (must be "love" asserting its presence). VV and Hotel (Jamie Hince) make their songs move and groove with a minimum of fuss, mostly just some grubby guitar, unobtrusive drum machine, and Suicide-like electronic pulses. Mitchum would surely approve. --Kathleen C. Fennessy