It?s high time to retire the sobriquet ?garage rock? as it?s a stupid sobriquet, and I w ill not stand for stupid sobriquets. So begone!...and now let?s talk about the good, uh, post-garage rock going on in Chicago right now, sorry, every time I think I?m out it pulls me back in. Most have heard of the Ponys, sadly too few heard of the Afflictions during their all-too-short lifespan, and now there?s Headache City. There are ex-White+Outs and Motards here, and they skillfully position this new material somewhere between the Sons of Hercules and the Cheater Slicks. Both are in evidence in the reedy, leering lead vocals (all derived from the ur-Jagger of course, but the students of that ol? teacher surpassed him long ago) and the headlong rush of ?Kneejerk Reaction? and ?Wax Pedigree.? But the band can shake things up too: ?Tearjerker? almost approaches Reigning Sound cry-in-your-beverage-of-choice territory, and ?Suicide Summer? betrays a pop sensibility, with the guitar nearly (gasp!) jangling on the chorus as bassist David Head leads a graceful descending chord progression. It doesn?t take the band long to get back to the razor-wire stuff, though, with the stomping ?Don?t? a particular highlight in that vein. The transition goes swiftly, as does the album, so encourage the production of more by getting this one. Nothing is over until this nervy gang decides it is! 8/10 -- Sal Addays (28 June, 2006)