Running With Scissors doesn’t sound like a typical Teenacide album title, but that’s probably because it isn’t a typical Teenacide album. The second full-length release from the Checkers is an ambitious and somewhat brilliant explosion of new sounds and new flavors. The album opens with a song called “Invitation” that sounds like something Pink Flag-era Wire might play if Joan Jett decided to front the band, and ends with “Bass Wolf,” a dark ’n’ delicious tribute to the late bassist of Japan’s Guitar Wolf that includes one of the band’s most impressive riffs. In between, the music flashes by fast and furious in shades of blue and gray that match the album’s stark cover photo of a pair of scissors placed against a slightly blood-spattered black backdrop. Sure, there are several moments of punk/pop splendor that’ll convince those already in-the-know that the Checkers still know how to make first-rate powerpop -- the stomping and bopping beats of “Come On Now” and “Tag You’re It” hint that this pair of tunes could have been snuck in nicely on their debut album, while the magnificent and ultra-melodic “Pick A Prize” is a perfect piece of radio-ready ear candy -- but there’s plenty here that will prick the ears of anyone who had planned on writing them off as a bunch of new wave revivalists simply hooked on getting teenage kicks: The reverb drenched jangle on the intro of “Searching For You” sounds like early ‘60s Kinks but suddenly explodes into a big blast of playful pop that boasts their most inventive melody yet; the title song sounds like nothing they’ve ever attempted and actually has more in common with brooding English art school post-punk than Blondie or Nikki & The Corvettes; and their cover of the early Tubeway Army rarity “Blue Eyes” is just simply amazing and shows what great taste they’ve always had in picking songs with the perfect fit. As on their debut -- 2003’s Make A Move -- the focal point of the Checkers remains vocalist Julie Vox and guitarist G.G. King, who -- when he’s not spitting out glorious staccato notes between riffs -- stacks layers and layers of crunching chords onto each song a la Steve Jones. However, former Madcap bassist and newest member Lee LeBaigue also proves himself to be a crucial ingredient to the band’s souped-up new/now sound, serving as a perfect complement to drummer Mark Reback’s rock-solid backbeat. Thoroughly modern yet truly Teenacidal, Running With Scissors is a move in the right direction from a band that’s already been heading that way for quite some time now.