Pop goes punk

When Pop Levi released his debut full-length, The Return to Form Black Magick Party, in 2007, he was a mop-topped retro-rocker with a penchant for T. Rex and psychedelic backmasking. Then, just a year later, he reinvented his sound with the funk-infused follow-up Never Never Love, coming off a bit like Prince by way of Scissor Sisters.

Clearly not one to stay stagnant for long, Pop Levi is issuing a new double A-side single, bundling “Police $ign” and “Terrifying (for Kenneth Anger).” Predictably, the single is nothing like anything he’s done before, this time drawing on the scuzzy garage blues of MC5 and the Stooges. The punkish sneer of “Police $ign” makes it the obvious choice for radio, with its slashing guitar chords and Casablancas-inspired vocal distortion. “Terrifying” is only marginally less vitriolic, with a lumbering, Zeppelinesque riff and high, yelping vocals.

Even through it’s new territory for Levi personally, it’s nevertheless a very familiar sound, especially in the wake of the garage rock revival of the early ’00s. Still, you’ve got to admire an artist as restless as Levi—by the time he gets around to his third LP, he’ll probably have gone through another stylistic overhaul.

The single is due out on Counter Records, although no release date has been confirmed. In the meantime, you can listen to both tracks on Pop Levi’s MySpace.