Thing

Trans Am turn 20 this year-- the original trio of Nathan Means, Philip Manley, and Sebastian Thomson is still together. It's hard for a band that operates on their level-- semi-prominent in certain circles with the odd stab of almost-fame here and there, such as when they opened for Tool-- to keep people interested for that long. They seemed sort of on their way in the late 1990s, when they were at their peak, making records that in hindsight anticipated some of th e trends of the following decade at the crossroads of rock and electronic music. A couple of substandard albums in the early to mid-00s seemed to kill their momentum, but 2007's Sex Change was a strong return to form, and now we have the band's ninth proper album, Thing, which isn't quite as solid as its predecessor but still plays to the band's strengths.

Full Review | More Reviews from Publication | Top Rated of 2010

After a three-year hiatus, Washington, DC’s standard bearers of tongue-in-cheek synth-rock have returned with Thing, a record that shows they may have finally outgrown flippancy after all. Or least they’ve found a way to showcase their sc-fi obsession without getting embarrassed about it.

Full Review | More Reviews from Publication | Top Rated of 2010