Boys Noize

It's hard to approach electronic music of the sort that Alexander Ridha (AKA Boys Noize) creates without acknowledging the accidental tidal wave of success that has crashed upon Justice. While the Justice duo is (steadfastly) French and Ridha hails from Germany, the peculiarly rockist take that these and quite a few other artists are bringing to electro has become the de facto vibe for This Minute's Dance Music Trend. Rather than the knuckle-dragging thump of big beat, though, Justice, Ridha, and others revel in the sheer electronicness of their tracks. Unfortunately for Ridha, Justice punctured the pop-consciousness first, and thus, Oi Oi Oi will be viewed through a set of come-lately spectacles. Which is a shame, since the hard-charging, bristly electronics of Boys Noize can more than stand on its own merits. Dispensing with the sparse, crystalline approach so many of his Teutonic brethren take to electronic music, Ridha's vibe is broke-down and nasty. The busted vocoder he employs makes several tracks sound like distorted versions of the '80s Spider-Man theme song, while the crapped-out Linn drum he uses on "Shine Shine" is all clap and no bass. Still, whether it's the relentlessly warped groove of a cut like "Wu-Tang #2" or even the bonus remix of Feist's "My Moon My Man," Oi Oi Oi makes dance music safe again for rock nerds.