The Auteurs' Luke Haines isn't the tunnelvision type. And his music will have nothing to do with dramatic, overpowering guitar solos or guttural roars of sheer, intense, emotional madness. In fact, the only typical thing about Haines' music is that it's atypical; an attribute he shares only with modern music geniuses.

Baader Meinhof is a (gasp!) concept album about a gang of Marxists called the Red Army Faction. You've noticed that concept albums have become something rock stars shy away from nowadays as they may appear pretentious and egocentric. And there's some truth to that stereotype, but Baader Meinhof executes quite nicely.

What's on this record is not the type of thing we're used to from Haines and it's really not as good as the stuff he does with the Auteurs, but it definitely has its appeal as an interesting diversion. It strays from his conventional folk-pop leanings into... um, funk, actually.

From the deliciously chunky groove of "Meet Me at the Airport" to the Prince circa Dirty Mind sound of "There's Gonna Be An Accident" to the downright dirtiness of "...It's a Moral Issue," this record kicks you in the head with one big-assed, steel-toed German boot. And while it's got moments that you wish weren't so politically charged, you can always feel the funk, y'all.

-Ryan Schreiber