*** THE OUTLETS

(Hendrix)

People thought it was weird enough when the Neighborhoods remade their local hit "The Prettiest Girl" for their 1989 major-label debut, a full decade after the original single. But here come the Outlets, a big 19 years after cutting the local classic "Knock Me Down," re-recording that song (and the rest of their old A-list) for an even more overdue national debut. And it sounds a lot better than you'd expect, especially if you remember the Neighborhoods remake.

The Outlets haven't tried to reinvent themselves or aim for a crossover hit. Instead, they've taken this opportunity to document what they've been doing since the Cantone's days: a lot of sturdy, punkish pop. With original members Dave and Rick Barton (the latter moonlighting from the Dropkick Murphys) joined by a new rhythm section, the band sound feistier now than they did on their one previous album (lately reissued on the local One Way label), which they made during an acoustic-flavored slump. Dave Barton could always sling a mean hook, and knew when to let his guard down: "Best Friend" (originally the follow-up single to "Knock Me Down") was one of the nicer relationship songs to come from the era that brought us the Nervous Eaters' "Just Head." The handful of newly written songs sound fine next to the oldies, and the cover of the Carpenters' "Close to You" is only part send-up. What this has to do with Jimi Hendrix is anybody's guess, but Hendrix is indeed the label owned by Jimi's family.

-- Brett Milano