Luscious Jackson: Electric Honey (Grand Royal/Capitol)
Named after a legendary basketball star, and signed to The Beastie Boys' label, these New York femmes grabbed our attention with 1997's Fever In Fever Out album. Now down to a trio following the departure of Vivian Trimble, Luscious Jackson have honed their mix of hip-hop beats and edgy guitar rock, coming on like a sexier, funkier alternative to the usual American guitar-girl bands. Jill Cuniff, Gabrielle Glaser and Kate Schellenbach may look like sweet New York dolls, but there's a tough, uncompromising undercurrent in such tunes as Nervous Breakthrough, Sexy Hypnotist and Space Diva. Deborah Harry guests on Fantastic Fabulous, while Emmylou Harris adds backing vocals to Ladyfingers. Girl power has rarely sounded this cool.
Kevin Courtney
A Place In The Sun (RCA)
Lit is yet another guitar-grinding four-piece from California, jostling for a place on the already crowded beach of West Coast rock. What sets these guys apart from the usual mob of rock surfers is their retro style, which conjures up 1950s cocktail bars, road trips to Vegas, and the recent US guys-on-the-game movie, Swingers. If the Red Hot Chili Peppers had spent their lives in a bowling alley, they might have sounded like this. Lit also have a smart-alec way with words, probably due to their professed love of Elvis Costello; songs such as Down, My Own Worst Enemy and The Best Is Yet To Come Undone revel in their own sense of pun, while Miserable, Zip-Lock and Happy manage to strike some exuberant pop notes. In the end, however, A Place In The Sun is overshadowed by too many rock cliches.
Kevin Courtney