Makinga funky dance pop magnetLike the Beach...

Making

a funky dance pop magnet

Like the Beach Boys once did with “Good Vibrations,” Seksu Roba moves the theremin out of its B-movie ghetto with its new record “Pleasure Vibrations.” Part of the synthesizer-obsessed electroclash scene, Seksu Roba creates funky dance pop that’s part lush European film score, part intergalactic roller-disco, but it’s the quirky magnetic field-powered instrument that puts it in its own class. Sukho Lee, who together with vocalist Lun*na Menoh makes up Seksu Roba, used his violin background to approach the instrument from a more melodic perspective. “I’m not a virtuoso,” he says, “but not many people have seen a thereminist, so they usually say, ‘Wow you were amazing.’ My advantage is there’s just not many of us.” Seksu Roba also tries to create its own world during performances through Menoh’s custom-designed costumes and theatrical stage show. “You could sort of compare it to Parliament Funkadelic,” Lee says. “They had their own whole universe. We’re not nearly as elaborate as that, but in our own minds we sort of think that way.” Seksu Roba celebrates its album release with a show tonight at the Derby.

Masvidal finally comes out to play

He may not be sure of his purpose on Earth, but Paul Masvidal has found a temporary answer in the band Aeon Spoke. When his Miami-based progressive metal group, Cynic, dissolved in 1996 following a legal dispute to leave its label, Masvidal moved to Los Angeles to discover himself. “I went into hiding and wrote and got into a reclusive mode with my music,” he says. The result is closer to Oasis and Coldplay than thrash, but the past still haunts him: Aeon Spoke was an unused title for Cynic’s second album, and Cynic drummer Sean Reinert has joined guitarist Eddie Van Orden and bassist Victoria Cecilia to back up Masvidal’s ethereal vocals on his yearning, introspective songs. “Sometimes I have certainty [about myself], but in the end there’s this big question mark and we’re not sure of anything,” Masvidal says. However, he is sure he’d like to re-sign with a label. “I was 18 when I signed my first deal and pretty oblivious. There’s a lot more wisdom this time around.” Aeon Spoke plays Oct. 29 at the Viper Room.

-- Kevin Bronson, with Chris Barton and Patrick Day