Gaga for Gigi

Volumizer's excellently titled Gaga for Gigi sounds for all the world like fellow Vancouver all-stars the New Pornographers, assuming Neko Case sang lead on every song -- and there's nothing wrong with that ideal whatsoever. Though bursting with the same hyperactive, new wave-inspired energy as the New Pornographers, Volumizer's roots extend beyond inspiration into the real deal: guitarist Rodney Graham was a member of post-punk cult favorites U-J3RK5, fellow guitarist Bill Napier-Hemy served with the Pointed Sticks (the first Canuck band signed to the seminal Stiff Records), and yet a third guitarist, Jade Blade, tenured with pioneering all-female punks the Dishrags. Gaga for Gigi is far from an exercise in nostalgia, however; frontwoman Shannon Oksanen's tart vocals possess postmodern cool, and the songs capture the bite of punk with none of the sloppiness.