You expect to lose some fights. Some of those losses are so memorable, you tell your friends about them, maybe even brag a little. So some time after removing the bandages from going nine rounds and 30 minutes with Smilin Liar on their new disc, "So Mrs. Kennedy, How Was The Drive?," I was ready to tell some friends.

The metal/punk fusion created by Smilin Liar is in your face, the loud sound well complemented by the quieter, more musical, areas of their songs. On "Black is the New Blonde," an overall dark and negative tone is highlighted by a wailing guitar solo, giving you two reasons to listen to it: First, this is a head-nodding rock song and second, there's a guitar part that'll have you playing along on your very own air guitar.

The one drawback to this disc is the sometimes hard to understand lyrics. While sometimes they're oddly entertaining, at other times, they seem a little too forced. The lyrics poorly accompany the heavy rock background and taint the song with a mid-80s rock ballad feel. Even though the disc clocks in at just less than 30 minutes, these vocal problems don't ruin the whole record, or even enough songs to spoil the final product. My advice: Get in a fight with Smilin Liar, take off the bandages and tell a few friends. BO

www.smilinliar.com