Here it sounds strained, forced, and it’s never able to conquer the towering synth washes that surround it. Though Havok’s voice has always been one of AFI’s more distinctive calling cards, it simply doesn’t work in an electronic context. Unfortunately, Puget also thought it would be a good idea to bring in Havok to handle all of the vocal/lyrical duties on the album.

Puget has a great ear for melody, and though he may not always cook up the catchiest of hooks, he still manages to completely hold his own in a genre that’s usually roped-off to outsider productions. “Again, Again and Again” - loaded with keyboard reverb - is a fast, energetic club track that oddly recalls the innocuous vibe of that “Numa Numa” song (aka “Dragostea Din Tei” by O-Zone), while “On a Friday” has the feel of a blacklight icebreaker that wouldn’t be out of place at all in a huge outdoor rave. A glance at Blaqk Audio’s CD booklet reveals “all music, programming and keyboards by Jade Puget”, which, given the fully fleshed sound of the album, is nothing short of incredible. As the years go by (and their popularity ascends), the former hardcore punk revivalists have morphed into emo-rock front runners that are rounded out by a rhythm section so precise you could almost call it “mechanical”. Of any modern-day rock group daring pick up a drum machine, AFI are remarkably suited to the occasion. As most of the couples leave to go back to their parents’ house (or Madonna’s after-party, at least), one question remains: do we have a new subgenre here (progressive-emo-house?) or a unique little one-night stand?Īs Blaqk Audio proves, it’s definitely the latter.ĭespite tragically stupid spellings of the band name and the resulting album ( Cexcells), Blaqk Audio is the side project of two members of the emo-rock outfit AFI: vocalist Davey Havok and guitarist/keyboard maestro Jade Puget.

Yet here we stand, glo-sticks dashed with eyeliner and hair-swooshes covered in frenzied dance-floor sweat.

While sipping punch at the Pop Music Prom Dance, the very thought of emo-rock and techno sharing the same dance card is about as likely as honky-tonk country going home with death metal by the end of the evening.

Keyboard cowboy techno