Sisters Of Sharon
Underground Recipes
(Shazza Music)
***1/2
The Sisters' Web site now carries the announcement: "No gigs planned" - which tells its own sad tale. Recently, the first ladies of Hong Kong music finally parked the tour bus in the rock'n'roll garage of fame after 11 years of not quite breaking into the big time. But they had fun and raised musical hell along the way, as reflected in this third and final "vinyl" set, in which they speed chaotically through their new wave roots, meander into a bit of reggae, and occasionally take their foot off the gas and chug through some more melodic scenery.

The best bits are the rhythmic rockers featuring guitarist Chris Bowers' manic vocals: suggestive of Belinda Carlisle on acid, with shades of Siouxsie Sioux and Deborah Harry, they propel the collection through its frantic finest moments, peaking with a linguistically dextrous performance on the Cantonese punkish number Will You?

Sometimes the energy drops and the plot is lost, but overall Recipes is a worthy cap on a legendary career. Uncompromisingly, it serves as a reminder that the Sisters were never an all-girl band: these are women.

Review by Stephen McCarty