Secret Weapons

Cabaret/drag artist Joey Arias — currently starring Off-Broadway in Arias with a Twist — takes over today’s Modern Tonic to rave about Semi Precious Weapons’ new album, We Love You.

Every once in a while you come across a record that you connect with almost immediately. We Love You barges right out of the gate, like “This is Semi Precious Weapons!” Listening to it reminds me of two things: (1) The first time I ever heard David Bowie, long before I knew who David Bowie was, and (2) The way glam rock sounded before it was labeled glam rock. So simple and innocent! It’s not overdone or over-processed, and it doesn’t sound like it was pieced together on a laptop. It sounds like a classic.

Which makes sense, given that it was produced by Tony Visconti, the man behind Bowie’s classic “glam” period. It’s refreshing to hear old-fashioned, kick-ass rock & roll. Plus, I love singer Justin Tranter’s voice, which makes me think of the word “pretty,” but not in a bad way…. He’s got an amazing way with words, too. Songs like “Magnetic Baby” and “Genius” are kind of shocking in that they actually seem profound. You’re like, “Oh my god, this music is making me do something instead of annoying me.” That doesn’t sound too jaded, does it?


We Love You will be available September 30 from Razor & Tie Records. Arias With a Twist is playing at Here Arts Center in NYC through December 31.