Pitchfork

Black Kids got stuck on repeat over here a little while ago with the massive, guitar-jangling synth-pop of "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How to Dance With You". At the rate they're going, this Jacksonville, Fla.-based five-piece will be able to release a remix album before they've even gone on a proper tour or put out an official record (you can download their four-song Wizard of Ahhhs demo from the band's MySpace). Fellow Jacksonville artist Beige has given the demo's "Hurricane Jane" a spiffy remix that emphasizes the original's moody dance-pop glint more than its echoey homemade charm.

As on "Not Gonna Teach", Black Kids start with a familiar scenario: Singer/guitarist Reggie Youngblood wants to spend the night with this girl he sees at a club, but she (via a backing vocal by one of the group's two keyboardists) keeps shooting him down. Then there's a sweeping chorus that's too exuberantly melodic to be weighted down by self-pity: "It's Friday night and I ain't got nobody/ What's the use of making the bed?" While Beige adds spare drum programming and carves out some more space for Youngblood's shaking voice, it's tough to improve on the original demo version, even with extra synths. And "Hurricane Jane" is only like Black Kids' fourth-best song.

MP3/Stream:> Black Kids: "Hurricane Jane (Beige remix)"
[original track from the Black Kids' MySpace page; remix available on the Beige MySpace page]