Miss June hail from Auckland, a punk-rock band described by some wag as ‘an unholy union between Sonic Youth and Le Tigre’. This may be so, but their brand spanking new debut album ‘Bad Luck Party’ reveals other sounds in the mix – ‘90s garage rock, power chords, power pop, Riot Grrrl attitude, and even a bit of Elastica and Garbage thrown in for good measure.

Recorded at The Lab with producer Tom Healy, ‘Bad Luck Party’ revels in its sound – loud guitars, jagged rhythms, and radio-friendly melodic hooks.

Opening track Anomaly especially illustrates the band’s genuine commercial and radio appeal, with the quiet (verse) – loud (chorus) dynamics giving power to the song. Previous singles Twitch (written about the band’s vocalist and until-recently medical student Annabel Liddell operated on a cadaver), and Best Girl are immediately appealing, fizzing with purpose and exuberance.

It’s the chorus of Best Girl that gives the album its inspired name. Debut albums with both a garage-y / DIY devil-may-care attitude and an eye to commercial appeal like this has don’t come around often, and it’s interesting to see how they are received.

Equally energetic New York label, Frenchkiss Records, look eager to promote them seriously, with a world tour imminent to support this debut album release. Miss June could well make an international mark with ‘Bad Luck Party’, with a much wider local audience hopefully to follow.