CD of The Week

Bitter Rivals is an album that would have been impossible to imagine coming from Sleigh Bells when their debut album Treats shattered expectations (and ear drums) three years ago. It may have been hard to imagine a third album of any kind coming from Sleigh Bells back then. The noise was fun and all, but didn't exactly lend itself well to a sustainable formula. After staying stagnation with last year's strong, deceptively sugary sophomore outing Reign of Terror, the duo clean up their sound and their act even further with ten songs that continue to jar in their potency as much as they jam.

Inspired in part by the death of guitarist Derek Miller's father and the tumultuous grief process that came with it, Bitter Rivals is at turns cathartic, confrontational, and catchy as hell. It comes equipped with the usual sonic outbursts and simple, sloganeering choruses we've come to expect from a Sleigh Bells record. The difference this time, however, is that Alexis Krauss' vocals have become the loud part of the equation. Miller's guitar work remains assertive, but also exhibits something not even Reign would have let you believe possible: restraint. He even sounds like he goes acoustic on songs like the title track and "Sugarcane," creating an exhilarating sense of tension in songs that would have been all release in the past. Meanwhile, 8-bit synths arpeggios and dance beats fill in the aggression vacuum. Left field highlight "Young Legends" sounds like Purity Ring if they emceed schoolyard rap battles, and "Sing Like a Wire" is pure Rhythm Nation revisited.

Another pleasant surprise in a short career of nothing but, indie rock's noisiest party crashers have proven that they can keep the party going, and confound and impress just as much by quieting down a little bit. How sweet. See Sleigh Bells' return to Philadelphia on November 20th at Union Transfer.