Here's Music That Will Blow Your Mind To Smithereens

The cover of the Smithereen's new release, "Blow Up," is a stark black handprint against the flying shards of a yellow, orange and red background. It was designed by Saul Bass, an artist who not only created the titles for Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 "Psycho," but supposedly designed the infamous shower scene as well. It says a lot about the Smithereens' music, usually tossed of as "'60s retro." It may be '60s, but it takes in the entire decade, dark and light.

The Smithereens, who play the Paramount on Monday, are not only about the flowery halcyon days of that decade's latter half - the Sgt. Pepper-ish "Blow Up" would be a prime example - but the era's dawning days as well: The years marked by the hangover of the cool generation, that beatnik thing, of social and political unrest and upheaval. Of assassination.

The Smithereens officially formed 12 years ago, when lead singer and former garbage man Pat DiNizio joined guitarist Jim Babjak, bassist Mike Mesaros and drummer Dennis Diken. The latter three had been playing together around the Carteret, N.J., area since grade school. The band worked bars, backed the likes of singer Otis Blackwell (writer of "Great Balls of Fire," "Don't Be Cruel" and "All Shook Up") and recorded self-written, self-produced EPs. They finally connected commercially with the 1986 release "Especially for You" and the monster single, "Blood and Roses."

The album title may sound like a rosy greeting from the cover of "Tiger Beat" magazine, but "Blood and Roses" is a different story. It shares the title of French director Roger Vadim's 1961 vampire film, a grisly little beast largely condemned at the time by state and religious leaders for its overt hetero- and homosexual themes. DiNizio, who writes most of the band's material, has always shown a cryptic streak. Nothing very nice ever happens in his songs, although lately a ray or two of optimism has shown through. It's little surprise that he has a lifelong fondness for Charles Addams' ghoulish "Addams Family" cartoons.

What keeps DiNizio's admittedly unhappy lyrics from choking on themselves is the crunch and drive of the chords and melodies. Recorded, the band delivers immediately accessible hooks and phrases. Mesaros' and Diken's rhythm work will drop your center of gravity in a heartbeat. It's like the feeling you get when you accidently drive off a curb at high speed - that timeless moment where you're suspended in space and falling all at once. You have no idea when or if you'll hit, but when you do your stomach momentarily relines your throat. Babjak's lead guitar sears like a blue-white acetylene torch; DiNizio's vocals are the weld.

Live, the band is easily as good as the recorded work, probably better. There's no high-tech fakery, no sleight-of-hand staging. The band's last Seattle performance at the Moore two years ago was a real rouser. DiNizio is very open on stage, extremely close and receptive to his audience. He clearly hasn't forgotten his scuffling days. And the rest of the band clearly shows its many years together. This is a tight, dynamic rock-'n'-roll unit.

Opening for the Smithereens is Canadian singer songwriter Tom Cochrane. Cochrane is currently riding strong with the hit single "Life Is a Highway" from his quadruple-platinum release "Mad, Mad World." He's also well-known for his work with Red Rider, whose apocalyptic "Lunatic Fringe" from 1981 is still one of the most frequently requested radio hits of all time.

Showtime Monday is 8 p.m. Tickets are $14.50 through Ticketmaster.