Spinnerette

Distiller’s frontwoman Brody Dalle returns as Spinnerette, a project (and album) that’s equal parts punky growl and purr.

Former Distillers leader Brody Dalle has been somewhat MIA since the dissolution of her popular L.A. punk act, but having played on husband Josh Homme’s projects and given birth to a daughter, she’s re-entered the fray with Spinnerette. Fans who crave the raw street punk of Dalle’s previous jams may be dismayed to find her slowing things down, but the distinctive bass-driven hip swing of Spinnerette offers delights aplenty on its own. Despite some birthing pains, including Dalle wriggling out of her major-label deal in exchange for artistic control, Spinnerette is an album that plays to the Aussie siren’s strengths, using her scorched voice to full effect on songs both seductive and menacing. Opener “Ghetto Love” is all handclaps and rumble-ready fuzz bass, a street fight still gestating behind a drunk’s eyes, and “Baptized by Fire” incorporates sizzling New Wave synths and a propulsive backbeat like stomping black leather boots.