Diane Coffee “Internet Arms” 2019. Polyvinyl Records, limited edition (300 copies) on clear fuchsia vinyl. Internet Arms is Diane Coffee’s (aka Shaun Fleming, former Disney actor and Foxygen drummer) fourth album and he’s still playing around with gender-bending, glammy and synthy dream pop, with a focusing on internet relationships and our relationship to the internet (spoiler: it’s not all chocolate and roses). Lots of “futuristic” electronica, some auto-tune sprinkled with gospel (ie “Simulation” and “Work It”), funky dance grooves (ie the title track “Internet Arms”), 80′s alternative pop inspiration (ie “War”) and show-tune musical flavors (ie “Good Luck” – Fleming has also performed in rock operas). I really like Diane Coffee – we’ve seen him perform a couple of times in the last few years (though we skipped his latest tour for this album because there was a bunch of other bands playing the same evening) and in concert he’s a master at working the stage and the audience. But I have to say that live experience doesn’t translate well onto wax – at least not on Internet Arms, or maybe I’m just not into this style of music when there isn’t a charismatic performer standing in front of me: it’s not mellow enough to be shoe-gaze dream pop to space out to on a long evening drive but it also doesn’t have enough energy for a sweaty dance session in my living room. It’s fine but I’m not sure how often I’ll be throwing this one onto the turntable.