Can Can

Why bother waiting to do a Live at the Budokan-type greatest-hits rehash when you can start your recording career with a wild and uninhibited live album? For Can Can’s first official full-length release, Patrick A. and Mary Collins present their raucous live show, captured at the Earl during the recent Pretty in Punk Festival. Recorded by Curt Wells, the club’s uniquely attentive sound engineer, the seven-track collection is an unrefined document of the band’s campy punk-blues rampage.

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Two-member acts are inevitably – and often unfairly – compared to the White Stripes. The main similarity here is the male-female dynamic and Patrick A.’s undeniably loopy and exaggerated vocals. Just think of them as Jucifer’s precocious and flamboyant kid brother. A welcome surprise is the beguiling vocals of guitarist Collins (formerly of the Moto-Litas). Her pop smarts shine through, even when coupled with a sassy drum machine and Patrick A.’s frequently unhinged effervescence. 4 stars

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Can Can plays Thurs., July 5, at the Earl.