Pucker Up for American Lips
A jagged, hook-heavy evolution finds the art-punk trio pushing their instincts to the edge.
by Stephan Boissonneault
American Lips detonate with On Strike!, their sophomore release eight years in the making since 2017’s Kiss The Void. The scrappy and artsy “collagen supplement rock” three-piece—made up of Adrian Popovich (guitars/vocals/synths), Jessica Bruzzese (bass/vocals), and Sebastien Grainger (drums/vocals/synths) of Death From Above 1979 —tear through 10 tracks and deliver an emotional, yet economical ‘Fuck You’ to the establishment that also moonlights as a sweaty indie dance floor eradication.
The raw opener “Record Store Day” only lasts a minute and change, featuring Grainger’s classic DFA howl. The rest of the album follows suit, presenting a noisy insurgency against the overworked population that is quickly on the verge of collapse. The title track, with its synthy krautrock energy, perfectly encapsulates the never-ending absurdist nightmare of living in 2025 with cheeky lyrics like “One two three four I declare a tariff war,” or jabs at the monster that is JD Vance.
American Lips don’t beat you over the head with their politics, but instead focus on presenting a buzzing energy that makes you want to surrender all inhibitions and just dance through the fatigue many of us are drowning in.
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