PEOPLE’S BLUES OF RICHMOND

Was the acronym for People’s Blues of Richmond (PBR) a happy accident? Probably not, but that’s just as well; the shoe definitely fits. The band’s current album, Good Time Suicide, boasts song titles like “Cocaine Powder” and lyrics like “God, I need a shower” — it’s party music, and they do it well, conjuring boisterous sing-alongs that at times read like mainstream-inflected Man Man, if that group wrote songs for house parties. Mostly, though, the threesome pens bluesy garage-rock that evokes visions of trashed co-eds dancing in the summery outdoors. From the way their music is marketed, it seems endemic to that carefree pursuit of “raging.” Though competent, music for listening rooms this is not. But if you wanna rhythmically sway with your old lady, plastic cup in hand — and let’s face it, a lot of us do — PBR set just the right tone for a bluesy, debauched spring evening. (Rachel Bailey)