Polkadot Cadaver

Sex Offender is the second album from former Dog Fashion Disco members Todd Smith and Jasan Stepp. Like the band's moniker, much on Sex Offender is tongue-in-cheek. Polkadot Cadaver's sound features almost too many different styles and influences to name. Sex Offender blends elements of everything from early Marilyn Manson (think A Portrait of the American Family) to Faith No More to, oddly enough, indie darlings Liars. Having said this, Polkadot Cadaver's sound is all their own, and they do a great job of mixing many influences into something interesting and listenable. Songs seamlessly blend electronic/industrial sounds with elements of funk, often within a few bars of each other. The album's title track features a symphonic background, while "Slaughterhouse Striptease" takes its theme of grim burlesque rather seriously, incorporating a bizarre, circus-sounding piano solo. As an album, Sex Offender tends towards the avant-garde and visionary, sounding almost theatrical, as if the whole thing was the score to an intergalactic metal opera. Polkadot Cadaver definitely aren't for everyone, but if you're interested in something totally new in heavy music, this is worth a listen.