Rasputina

Romanticism, child soldiers, Mary Shelley, draconian oppression, death. All dark and sad things, right? Not in the capable hands of chamber-pop goddesses (including one dude goddess) Rasputina. What makes these gloomy goths so appealing? First, they aren't purists. Cellos, corset rock and morose cynicism dance a ghostly polonaise with pop accessibility and the whimsical eclecticism of circus music. And, oh, the layers, the textures -- there hasn't been a monster mash this intricate, this complicated since Dr. Frankenstein's Creature (or maybe Kate Bush).