3 EP

With 2017's Albeit Living, Sextile morphed from a spooky post-punk quartet into an unhinged synth rock duo. Even though it was their second album, it felt like a true introduction to Brady Keehn and Melissa Scaduto's music. They kept the momentum going in 2018 with "Current Affair," a sleek yet scathing single featuring guest vocalist Sienna Scarritt, and 3, a somewhat confusingly named five-song EP that continues Sextile's evolution. The seething synths and Linn drums that first appeared on Albeit Living now take center stage, particularly on 3's bookends: as it shimmies on its titular beat, "Disco" proves that dance-punk still sounds subversively sexy decades after its invention while incorporating sharp-tipped hints of EBM and darkwave. "Hazing" closes the EP with another floor-mover that's all echoing deadpan vocals and pulsing synth bass that showcase 3's tighter song structures. While Sextile sound a little more reined-in than they did on Albeit Living, they haven't lost all of their theatricality. "Oh my god/I've lost my brains!" Keehn wails over low-slung guitars on "Spun," a raucous slice of sci-fi camp that, along with "Drop You," suggests Sextile can't restrain themselves for too long. Viciously entertaining, 3 is another spike-heeled step in the right direction for Scaduto and Keehn. ~ Heather Phares