It wasn't long ago that many folks had written Liars off as a trendy funk-punk New York band that lost the plot and wasted their potential on fruitless self-indulgence. Oops. This trio has since had the last laugh when their brilliantly warped 2006 release Drum's Not Dead broadsided our ears with its undeniably raw power. And the chuckling can go on because this eponymous effort is every bit as unexpected, kinetic, and wonderfully mad as its predecessor. Less centered exclusively around percussion and voice, this album is dark, primal and quotes generously from the past of 60s/70s garage-punk.