Suddenly my dusty car is a silver 1996 BMW convertible and I can’t take my foot off the gas. Punchy hi-hats burst out, and Dorio counts down from three. Once they decide it’s time to go, earworm guitar licks and acidic keys take over. We’re all in for the ride.
Alter egos and archnemeses abound on Agent Friday & the Perfect Angel, a hypersaturated Nineties rom-com-turned-spy thriller fully realized. “Leather seat, automatic/ I’m in my own personal racer/ Turbo speed/ Dare you to find me,” Chad Doriocourt and Rachel Rascoe taunt, pressing harder on the pedal. Propulsive Madonna Music-type breakbeats tie the 11 maximalist tracks together as the Austin-launched, soon-to-be Philly-based duo zigzags with enemies hot on their tail. Rascoe’s sweet twee deadpan meets Doriocourt’s alluring murmur through the acoustic-forward “Romantic” as the spies decide to rendezvous in Monaco. They arrive coolly with the mellow penultimate track “International Rolling” – not quite hitting the brakes, but slowing down just enough.
With the warmth of a cassette recording and the glittering textures of a digital masterwork, a little Chiptune and some alien noises mixed in, Dorio crafts a danceable alternate reality with a happy ending. The CD ejects, case closed.
This article appears in July 31 • 2026.