In Brief

Too often, retro rock stylings serve to camouflage weak songs or a lack of character. Not so with Redd Kross, which has spent the better part of 18 years rejuvenating vintage rock elements with a distinctively wry joie de vivre. The Los Angeles quartet’s latest is no exception; the Beatles-esque vocals, glam-rock swagger, Bowie-like quirks and proto-metallic crunch only enhance these gutsy tunes. Redd Kross plays a free show at Aron’s Records on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

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Records are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to four stars (excellent).

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Hear the Music

* Excerpts from these albums and other recent releases are available on The Times’ World Wide Web site. Point your browser to: http://video.nohib.com./soundclips