Les Thugs' Nineteen Something is a great leap forward from their previous releases Strike and As Happy as Possible.
While they stick to the hook-happy ditties that made them France's best-loved punk rockers--evidenced on cuts like "Side by Side" and "While I'm Waiting"--Les Thugs cling fast to artistic growth, downshifting into the misty-sounding "Les Lendemains Qui Chantent" (their first number en Français) and going psychedelic on the organ-burned "Magic Hour."
En écoute : Les Thugs - defeated
Kurt Bloch, the ringleader of Seattle's Fastbacks, helmed the soundboard to put the "ooh" into Nineteen Something's potent "la la" machine. Bloch's not just a producer but also a fan; his tight-cornered rendering augments Nineteen Something's escape from the confines of typical punk rock.