Orgy

Orgy's combination of new-wave shimmer, Jay Gordon's dour vocals, and heaviness that didn't pander caught the ears of nü-metal dudes comfortable with their masculinity and girls fashioning themselves after Death from Vertigo's Sandman comic books. Thanks to Orgy's blistering cover of "Blue Monday," a generation of gloomy kids raised on a diet of Hot Topic and Invader Zim were introduced to the world of electronic auteurs New Order.

Although Orgy became known for that cover, its platinum-selling 1998 debut (Candyass), and its androgynous image (wearing more makeup than a majority of its female fans), its encounter with popularity faded. That's a shame, considering the intense, overlooked 2000 album Vapor Transmission.

Four years and a major-label album later, Orgy reemerges both on disc and on the road with Punk Statik Paranoia. Its latest effort is rougher around the edges compared to such brilliant previous moments as "Fiction (Dreams in Digital)," but the band does return to form on "Vague" and "Make Up Your Mind." Onstage, expect Amir Derakh's synth-guitar to be loud, the makeup heavy, and the music even more so.