What happens when a riot grrrl grows up? The answer is Bratmobile's Ladies, Women and Girls. The B-Mob has maintained all the attitude, rawness and strange sex appeal of Pottymouth while clearly moving to a higher plane in terms of substance and sheer musical execution.

The songs on this album are more thoughtful than the visceral, spontaneous stuff of yesteryear. A song like "In Love With All My Lovers", with its sorrowful yet somehow serene attitude, could only be written by someone who has attained the wisdom that comes with maturity; the old Bratmobile didn't have that depth. It shows up again in the ambiguous and piercing "It's Common (But We Don't Talk About It)", which touches on themes of communication and emotional repression.

The band's signature, casual approach to performing songs has also gone somewhat by the wayside. Here the ladies allow themselves to indulge in instrumental competence to a greater degree than ever before. Ladies, Women and Girls is as musically tight as Bratmobile has ever been. There are subtle niceties of bass line, guitar lick and drum fill here, too, exposing the band's heightening command of nuance. It's not that Allison, Erin and Molly are suddenly Joe Satriani, but they exhibit more control than ever before.

As a Bratmobile fan, I can honestly say that I'm perfectly satisfied with Ladies, Women and Girls. While some of the immediacy of the band's earlier work may be missing, I like the fact that they've allowed themselves to age. I can always go back and listen to Pottymouth if that's what I really want!