Sleigh Bells “Jessica Rabbit” 2016. Torn Clean Records. I got this from Santa for Christmas (and by Santa I mean that I went to my favorite record store, bought it and wrapped it up for myself) and am just now getting a chance to spin it. Jessica Rabbit is Sleigh Bell’s fourth release and the band is one of my current favorite acts. I fell in love with their experimental noise pop after their first release, Treats, in 2010. I even follow vocalist Alexis Krauss on Instagram and her life seems, like, amazing – all cute dogs, hiking in majestic nature, singing like an angel. The band’s signature experiments with tension and contrast are demonstrated on Jessica Rabbit with Krauss’ celestial vocals backed by heavy rhythms, metal guitar rifts and dangerous anger (“Throw Me Down the Stairs” and “I Can’t Stand You Anymore” where Alexis roars “destructive a permanent embrace of oblivion bombs don’t compare to the trouble you bring me, I just can’t stand you anymore”). Sleigh Bells also channel their inner Cocteau Twins on “Torn Clean,” “Hyper Dark” and “Loyal For” with gossamer notes floating on ethereal waves of savage despair. Overall Jessica Rabbit feels more cohesive than their previous release, Bitter Rivals, which I enjoyed but tend to listen to only a few choice tracks rather than as a whole. I think this is their strongest album since Treats.