Royal Crown Revue: The Contender

With the retro-swing craze entering the first phase of critical backlash, bands are clamoring for position in the we-got-here-first sweepstakes. After all, why should Brian Setzer, Royal Crown Revue, and Squirrel Nut Zippers be blamed for helping start what a bunch of Zoot-suited trendoids are finishing The downside of that argument is that it ignores the quality of the swingers' recordings: Squirrel Nut Zippers' new Perennial Favorites is diverse, inventive, and musically accomplished; The Contender, the second major-label album from the nine-year-old L.A. septet Royal Crown Revue, is not. Rehashing the sounds and styles of 1996's Mugzy's Move—how much new ground is "Zip Gun Bop (Reloaded)" going to break—songs such as "Walkin' Like Brando" and "Friday The 13th" are nothing but calculated kitsch, complete with silly gangster accents and chin-music clichés. The best neo-swing swings because the bands seem to genuinely enjoy playing hot, swinging jazz; the worst swings because that's the scene. It's all about posturing, and there's virtually nothing but posturing to be found on this redundant, perfunctory misfire.