Unlike Tiger Army's affection for more cerebral Lovecraftian imagery, Nekromantix's take on the psychobilly horror theme is firmly rooted in the goofy irony of b-horror movies. The urge to write them off as a gimmick band is certainly there, but their songwriting has this way of transcending their image with really catchy pop hooks.

This happened with their previous album. I dug Return Of The Loving Dead at first but it didn't resonate and the album's life in my stereo rotation was a short one. Later that year the local club started playing it between sets at punk shows and that slowly embedded it in my consciousness. It might just be the very amicable mood that shows put me in, but I came to appreciate that record and all of it's silly "Dead Elvis singing about gargoyles" energy.

Maybe that's just the kind of treatment that Dead Girls Don't Cry needs to connect with me, because I'm not feeling this.

There's a lot of talk in the band's press bio about how this album was prepared and recorded quickly due to Kim Nekroman's relocation from Copenhagen to LA while the brothers Sandorff remained in Denmark. That may explain why some of this seems like a rush job; the band is as tight and proficient at their instrumentation as they've ever been, but the quality of lyrics and songwriting isn't consistent through the album.

"MoonChaser" is an exception. It has one of those melodic choruses' that sticks in your head for hours and it's high on the list of this band's best songs. The title track and "I'm A ShockStar" have similar mid-paced rockabilly vibes and both work extremely well. However the album's faster material like "Backstage Pass To Hell," "Where Do Monsters Go" or "Dead By Dawn" just don't sit right with me. The energy's there but the hooks seem nonexistent.

I lavished praise on Nekroman's other band the HorrorPops earlier this year and that opinion stands. It's a complement that one's songwriting is (usually) good enough to make the listener forget about a kitschy image and lyricism. Unfortunately Dead Girls Don't Cry only seems to get that right half the time.