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The Secret Machines, ‘The Secret Machines’ (TSM)

Leaving Reprise after two commercially inert, if artistically compelling, albums and losing guitarist Ben Curtis (who founded the group with brother Brandon), this Brooklyn-based trio return like Gary Numan on a hard-rock bender. Adding electronic gurgles to heavy, prog-rock power chords, The Secret Machines recalls Rush and Black Sabbath at one end of the sonic spectrum (“The Fire Is Waiting”) and David Bowie’s spazzier, punk-era edge at the other (“Atomic Heels”). In between those far-flung atmospheric poles, the band proves they’re more than just the sum of their seamless influences, cranking out startling gems like “Last Believer, Drop Dead” and “Have I Run Out,” which throb with noise-encrusted hooks.

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