Though bits and pieces of We Are the Pipettes have been released in various forms over the last couple of years, today marks the release of the three British babes' first full length this side of the Atlantic and is therefore a cause for celebration for those of us with certain insatiable fetishes. I'm of course referring to a passion for 60s music bordering on the depraved which only an "experiment in manufactured pop" like The Pipettes can acutely satisfy (I also have a little something something for polka dots so it's win win for me I guess.)

The Pipettes were "put together" by Monster Bobby back in 2003 in an attempt to re-invent the American girl group sound of the early 60s, but with a modern edge. So while the album's 12 breezy and insanely catchy songs are indeed shaped by the boy + girl romanticism of The Ronettes and The Shangri-Las, The Pipettes also manage to turn the naivety associated with the era into a fun feminist manifesto. Basically, you can't help but get the feeling that The Pipettes are less "it's my party and I'll cry if I want to" and more "it's my party and I'll punch you in the face and run off with your best friend if I want to" kind of gals. My only concern is that it all feels a might joke-y at times, more B-52s than "Be My Baby" if you will, which could turn the group into a one album wonder faster than you can say "Rock Lobster." For now though We Are the Pipettes might just be the perfect remedy for the October autumn blues so it'll probably be spinning on my turntable for a while.

*     *     *     *    *

The Pipettes - "Pull Shapes"

The Pipettes - "Judy"