Rock and Roll with the Beat Pumped Up To Hot Pink.

The B-52’s are back and they haven’t change a bit…and that’s a good thing. To imagine that after sixteen years they could re-create the same kind of kitschy dance-party attitude that defined “Rock Lobster” and “Love Shack”, you’d have to be living in your own private Idaho. That’s why it’s so thrilling to experience the album that does just that, “Funplex.”

The guitars are crunchier, the synthesizers quirkier and the beats chunkier in keeping with the contemporary production of Steve Osborne and the musical direction of drummer turned guitarist, Keith Strickland. Thankfully, Fred Schneider hasn’t lost a bit of his outrageousness, acting as a psychedelic master of ceremonies with shouts like “baby, lose that phone, rock me down to the jelly bone!”, “I’m at the mall on a Diet pill!” and “Hey y’all last call, last chance to dance!” As Cindy Wilson and Kate Pierson wail their campy harmonies on dance song after dance song, it’s hard to resist the retro-vibe.

The opening song “Pump” recalls “Planet Claire” with its long surf-guitar intro. “Hot Corner” has the same kind of garage-rock punch as “Private Idaho” and the title song is the 21st century equivalent of “Love Shack.” Each song is a call to the dance floor and they keep up the pace throughout, ending with one of the best songs to ever close an album, “Keep This Party Going.” As the song cranks to a climax, Schneider shouts out a roll call of party cities around the world while Wilson and Pierson punctuate his lines with “Let’s party!” It’s a moment guaranteed to make you either hit play again or go back to some of their older albums and rediscover that wacky sound that has been missing for almost a generation.          

Listen for songs from the B-52s album “Funplex” all this week on Paul Shugrue’s new music show “Out of the Box” on Hampton Roads public radio 89.5 WHRV Monday through Thursday from 7pm until 9pm, Saturday afternoon from 1pm to 5pm and on-demand at www.whrv.org/outofthebox.