Nerdy Punks

Part art troupe, part '80s synth-pop cover band, these poster models for the Williamsburg, Brooklyn-based Electro-clash scene are at once great pop stars and great hype merchants. Finally available for wide release nearly two years after it started dribbling out of Downtown New York and Berlin art galleries, Fischerspooner's synth-pop bubblegum debut album has lost none of its sweetness. Programmed by Warren Fischer and spoke-sung by Casey Spooner, with background help from fatalistic femmes Cindy Green and Lizzy Yoder, these are retro-digital nuggets with more hooks than a bait shop. Tracks like the pulsating, sequencer-happy "Emerge," the ambiance-heavy lament "Tone Poem," and the arpeggios and drum machines cover of Wire's "The 15th" sound as heavenly next to old {|Yaz|} and {|Soft Cell|} records as they do next to nouveau electro-pop heartthrobs like {|Peaches|} and {|Felix Da Housecat|}. As is the case with most multimedia modern art, Fischerspooner operate under a thick schmear of irony, and a questionable depth of commentary, but one need not get caught up in theory when singing along with these irresistible songs. This long-awaited major-label release adds a remix of and a video for "Emerge," plus a full-length DVD (entitled DVD #1) of the group's self-produced videos and film work ("Emerge," "The 15th," and the short film Sweetness), live and documentary footage, and more. "Sounds good, feels good, looks good too," declares Spooner on "Emerge," and it's hard to argue with him.