Product Review

For all the noisy bluster involving plastic barrettes, thrift-store guitars, and caterwauling political catchphrases, Sleater-Kinney have always been pragmatic about their music. The group's self-titled debut got by on ferocity alone. But each successive release has exhibited a dramatic step forward as youthful exuberance gives way to melody and poise. One Beat is the trio's most assured work yet. A jubilant blast of tambourines, theremin, and Corin Tucker's rubber-band vocals usher in the spiky "Oh!," the Strokes' locker-room diffidence mingles with Sonic Youth's angular cool on "Prisstina," and the title track, all urgent wailing and power chords, rumbles with pure excitement. The rest of the album isn't far behind. --Aidin Vaziri