Twist Party!!!

by Hal HorowitzA slight concept, even by Los Straitjackets' standards, the masked men from Nashville time travel back to the swinging '60s and land in the middle of a suburban twist party. Special guest Kaiser George Miller handles honking sax and vocals on a set of 16 dance-ready tracks that fly by in a little over a half-hour. It's fun aplenty, but like that tasty Chinese food, you'll forget about it an hour after the disc ends. A few covers ("Domino Twist" originally recorded by, who else, Fats Domino and Joey Dee & the Starliters' "Peppermint Twist") shimmy and shake next to 14 similar sounding slabs of hip-swiveling, foot tapping twist music. It's a blast from the past for those who remember the days of hula hoops and lava lamps, or Austin Powers fans, and a kick while it lasts. Even at the abbreviated playing time, the band runs short of ideas, tapping into "Isn't Love Grand," a very non-twisty British Invasion/Merseybeat styled ballad circa Gerry & the Pacemakers. "All Back to Drac's" brings the group's beloved surf music to the table and "Mad Scientwist" nails the '60s instrumental vibe right down to sound effects and sax. A deluxe edition adds an hour-long DVD of the three Pontani Sisters (a burlesque troupe who appear on the cover but are not on the audio disc), decked out in their best bikinis, wigs and white go-go boots teaching us how to do a few of the album's dances and starring in a few intentionally cheesy videos. Like the album, it'll provide a few chuckles the first time around but it's doubtful that even fans of Los Straitjackets' shtick will return for a second helping.