**1/2 Comet Gain

SNEAKY

(Beggars Banquet)

This UK fivesome's tangential relation to the riot grrrl punk stirrings that swept from the US to Britain a couple years back -- Comet Gain guitarist Jon Slade was then in the grrrl-fueled band Huggy Bear -- gives singer/guitarist David Bower's earnest positivism a telling historical context. Just as Jam man Paul Weller responded to Sex Pistol nihilism with mod hope and Who-inspired power chords, Bower reacts to '90s punk with Quadrophenia-era guitars (equal parts chime and bite), rousing and willfully naive lyrics like "What sets us apart is the strength of youth" ("Strength"), Brit-centric themes ("A Film by Kenneth Anger"), and the occasional punchy R&B trumpet and organ arrangements that pepper the group's best tunes. Bower even sings awkwardly (some would say poorly), just like Weller, with a thick English accent and a tendency to go flat on salient lyrics. But Comet Gain's energetic optimism is infectious and just plain likable enough to overcome the limitations of his voice and his Weller obsession, even if a line like "Say yes, let's enjoy the winter" ("Say Yes") pushes the good vibes a little too far.

-- Matt Ashare

(Comet Gain open for the Peechees this Tuesday, September 2, upstairs at the Middle East; call 864-EAST.)