The Birthday Massacre is a gothic electro-pop band from Canada and this is their third disc. Their songs are generally driven by swirling electronic keys with backing guitars against thunderously heavy bass and drums. About half the songs are lush and atmospheric, often with touches of darkness and melancholy, and the rest are upbeat, catchy pop songs, quite suitable for a dance club. Walking with Strangers is their most mature disc to date in terms of polish, confidence, energy and the overall quality and diversity of song-writing, though their second one, Violet, is not far behind. It is harder, however, to recommend their first disc, Nothing & Nowhere; there are several excellent songs (and half the songs were redone on later discs) but the production is too often demo quality rather than that of a regular release. This is all the more surprising given the superb production on Violet and Walking With Strangers – it is incredibly full, thick, heavy and dense, yet absolutely crystal clear.

Their female vocalist, Chibi, has a smooth, deliberate, very pretty delivery with a warm, laid-back "little girl" style that is sometimes almost a melodic speaking, though on past discs she had a more rhythmic singing style. She frequently blends in a sort of seductive playfulness that makes the music all the more appealing and engaging.

The Birthday Massacre has a keen sense for writing accessible, memorable pop songs but with a dark, sometimes even sinister edge, especially in the lyrics, which are often bleak and somewhat cynical, though obviously very personal. The contrast with the upbeat, rocking music and perky vocals is frequently arresting, though it was more pronounced on Violet. The Birthday Massacre has carved an excellent and somewhat unique niche for themselves in the gothic pop scene; I suspect it will not be long before other bands attempt to imitate their alluring style.

For more information visit the band’s MySpace site: http://www.myspace.com/thebirthdaymassacre or http://www.thebirthdaymassacre.com

8.0 / 10