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** Diffuser

INJURY LOVES MELODY

(Hollywood)

This New York–based band have been waiting around in various guises (including Flu 13) since 1994 for their shot at whatever it is bands want major labels to give them a shot at — and they’ve been waiting since last summer for Hollywood to release this CD. But from the start, it’s clear that the brand of guitar-powered, angst-ridden, vaguely dissonant alterna-rock they specialize in is somewhat out of date. Sure, Diffuser prove adept at writing and recording the kind of album that Foo Fighters have been turning out since the demise of Nirvana. In fact, the best songs here are better than just good. But what’s most telling about Injury Loves Melody — and, indeed, about the state of ‘90s-style alterna-rock in general — is that the most engaging track is a hidden cut that pops up more than 10 minutes after the disc’s final cut. Yeah, it’s one of those secret cuts that were once so fashionable, but the real surprise is that after a full album of serious, soul-searching, occasionally tedious tunes, Diffuser switch gears and deliver a blistering, genuinely amusing (and catchy) Spinal Tapustyle cock-rock parody with a screamin’ Paul Stanleyish intro rap, lots of crowd noise, a shredding guitar solo, and ±yrics like “Pull me around in your sex shop/Like a wet mop/On a hot potato/Hot butter running down the crack of your ass/My motor’s running so come on please step on the gas.”

— Matt Ashare