On their eighth album in 45 years, Redd Kross offers more of the same (specifically, two LPs’ worth) to winning results. The eponymous title and ruby red cover serve as self-referential nods to their first EP as Red Cross, decisions that would typically signal a rebirth or a return to form. Instead, Redd Kross refortifies what brothers Jeff and Steve McDonald have been doing for decades: churning out wild and wily bubblegum rock.
Throughout the album, the McDonalds lean heavily on the ‘60s — both as a sonic identity and as a unifying concept for the long-form format they’ve chosen. This would not be a Redd Kross record without tongue-in-cheek cultural allusions, and here they pay tribute to the pseudo-psychedelia of yesteryear, from the Pictures of Matchstick Men-esque opener (and Paul Stanley jab?) Candy Coated Catastrophe, to the meta, Beatles-referencing Good Times Propaganda Band. Nonetheless, Redd Kross never completely embraces pastiche, keeping an arch detachment from their influences, while also squeezing in a few unironically heartfelt moments — like single and album highlight I’ll Take Your Word For It.
Ultimately, the gamble to release a late-career double album pays off; the band sounds nimble and fresh, and the expansive nature of the album gives each brother the opportunity to display their full writerly range. Even if Redd Kross doesn’t deviate much from established formula, the group have refined their strengths enough to produce perhaps their best album yet.
Redd Kross is out now on In The Red Records.