First Look: Ted Leo – “The Brutalist Bricks”

Ted Leo and the Pharmacists’ latest full-length (and first for Matador) turns back from the relative sprawl of 2007’s eclectic Living with the Living and finds the rocker playing to his strengths: melody-minded post-punk dispatches blasted fast and loud. “The Mighty Sparrow” kicks things off with Leo’s reliable power-chord heat, but the album never cools down — the catchiest hooks come early (“Ativan Eyes,” “Even Heroes Have to Die”) but the brisk collection bristles with inspiration from front to back.

Ted Leo – “The Mighty Sparrow”: mp3
Ted Leo – “Even Heroes Have To Die”: mp3

(The Brutalist Bricks is out now on Matador)

More: New Music | 2010 Album Release Calendar