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Next time you have a party, slap this sucker on the player. You'll probably be fielding questions for the duration: "Who is this?"

It's Atlanta quintet El Pus (pronounced poose), and the band's major-label debut is a party on a little silver disc. Opening track "Monday Morning" announces the band's intentions from the get-go: "We're gonna party up, until we get enough . . . and we ain't stoppin'/Till we get to Monday morning."

Virgin (ENLARGE)
El Pus blends punk elements with traditional hip-hop party anthems.
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HIP-ROCK • El Pus "Hoodlum Rock, Vol. 1." Virgin. 13 (plus one hidden) tracks. Grade: B

Hip-hop and rock mix freely at the El Pus soirée, but don't let that scare you. If the melding of hip-hop and rock conjures images of tired '90s grunge leftovers married to shouty, angst-ridden lyrics sung by whiny suburban white boys, fear not. El Pus is as much a rock band as a rap group, but the rock elements are more punk than Papa Roach.

The CD might remind you of the genre-busting N.E.R.D. albums of the Neptunes' Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, but El Pus is rawer and rowdier. There's a hint of pre-"Purple Rain" Prince in "Girl," and "Nite Train" weds a loping hip-hop beat with a slowed garage-rock riff. Take the vocals off "Suburb Thuggin' ," and it could easily be mistaken for a Green Day track. If you did that, though, you'd lose the priceless refrain of "you're just thuggin' in the suburbs" and the punch line: "you're not a tough guy/pull your pants up."

The smartest thing about "Hoodlum Rock, Vol. 1" is that it doesn't wear out its welcome. Clocking in at about 35 minutes, the party's over before you get tired of it. And if you want more, just start it over again. You're sure to run into some things you missed on your first pass through this shindig.

— Shane Harrison