Cobra Starship

Side projects, especially those featuring members of nondescript emo bands, are not usually known for being earth-shattering propositions. And despite a few moments of genuinely twisted vision, Cobra Starship is no exception. Fronted by Midtown's Gabe Saporta, the band's videos (including the title song from the overhyped mega-flop film Snakes on a Plane) have included members of the Academy Is and Gym Class Heroes, but the live act features a less-known collection of emotionally drenched hipsters.

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More About

• Gabe Saporta
• Gym Class Heroes
• Cobra Starship
• Panic! At the Disco

While the City Sleeps, We Rule the Streets is a hodgepodge of clever song titles that have a difficult time living up to their implications. The opener, "Being From Jersey Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry" is a catchy acoustic riff beaten into submission while "Send My Love to the Dance Floor, I'll See You in Hell (Hey Mister DJ)" sounds like a wordy outtake from Panic! at the Disco.

But just when all seems lost in a perpetually verbose, adolescent stupor, Saporta fires off "The Church of Hot Addiction," a funny and intense mix of post punk and disco.

"I got a nasty, new compulsion/And you already have a notion," sings Saporta as the band works up a legitimate sweat behind him. There's not another moment as propulsive and unique on the rest of the effort, but Saporta has shown that he can semi-skillfully maneuver past the generic minefields of emo's limitations.