BANG sugar BANG

There are a lot of things to miss about '80s movies: body-swapping comedies, for one. Clothes-buying montages are another lost art. (He's a cowboy! No. He's a jock! No. He's suave with a skinny tie! Success!) But for our money, you can't beat the lost-yuppie scene. It goes like this: Uptight yuppie falls for the Day-Glo antics of a material girl and ends up in a funky, punky nightclub, totally out of his element. He marvels at all the dyed-haired freaks and loosens his tie and gains the woman's acceptance by rocking out to the new-wave punk band onstage.

BANG sugar BANG is all of those bands in all of those movies put together. Born between the dying garage-rock craze and the nascent dance-rock boom, BANG sugar BANG stands out by bringing together the styles. It's got the rawness of garage, the fashion sense of the dancers and a healthy dose of punk to give the party a little kick start (the bassist and guitarist claim to have met while working in an erotic Jell-O-mold shop...how punk is that?). Lead singer Cooper (one name, natch) has been compared to Exene Cervenka, and she does have a little bit of the LA goddess in her: She's got a sensual howl that rises and falls like waves on a stormy ocean.

Check 'em out at Lemmons this Friday -- and if you see a guy in a suit who looks confused, buy him a beer.