Substance Behind All the Swagger

All the young and old dudes hoping for David Bowie’s return to the glam-rocking inspiration of his “Ziggy Stardust” days might as well be waiting for Godot. But they can enliven their eternal vigil with this hunky-dory substitute.

~ There is no avoiding the fact that singer Glen Meredith is a Bowie lover who has fallen for the icon’s stagy vibrato vocal approach. And there is no denying that Meredith is very good.

His strong voice swaggers confidently above his bandmates’ honed but raucous attack, lending emotional depth to fairly straightforward songs (written by Meredith and guitarist David Volmer) in which protagonists fall in love, then fall hard when dumped, against a backdrop of glam decadence and glitzed-up sleaze.

The delivery in many of the 10 songs coils strands of blame and indictment toward a manipulative other with self-loathing and--a key to making them involving--a hint of the hopeful, guard-dropping romanticism that allowed the protagonist to fall for her in the first place.

This is All the Madmen’s fourth release since 1992; the Orange County band has improved by increments with each one. “Twinstar Radio” is the biggest advance yet, keeping the catchy melodies and strong playing evident on the band’s previous CD “Teenage American Style” (1996), but omitting all the filler.

Every song on “Twinstar Radio” works. The “ba-ba-ba-ba-ba” pop chorus of “Bahm, Bahm, Bahm” takes hold the way choruses of “ba-ba’s” are supposed to, and the less-memorable melodies are quite tuneful nevertheless. The guitars are elegantly messy, with hints of both Mick Ronson’s directness and Radiohead’s arty distortion.

A touch of rockabilly here, a too-brief allusion to Television’s excursive guitar style there, some acoustic interludes and traces of Psychedelic Furs’ concrete-candy, circa “Pretty in Pink,” are among the attractions that provide some variation amid the Bowie-isms.

For all its wryly ironic attitudinizing about getting whupped at the game of love, “Twinstar Radio” openly exults in the joys of blazing away to a catchy tune and keeping it sharp and tight.

(For information about All the Madmen, contact Moegrease@aol.com.)

* All the Madmen, Majestics, Lounge Act and Goforthgetters play tonight at Linda’s Doll Hut, 107 S. Adams St., Anaheim. 9 p.m. $6. (714) 533-1286.

Ratings range from one star (poor) to four stars (excellent), with three stars denoting a solid recommendation.

Mike Boehm can be reached by e-mail at Mike.Boehm@latimes.com.