Last week, a Dischord e-mail confirmed what’s been widely assumed for months: Slant 6 is no more. That means a new EP featuring the local trio, whose Wire-y sound presaged Elastica’s, is probably its last testament. “I Love You a Lot,” the first of the band’s two contributions, is a worthy (if uncharacteristically amorous) farewell; its jumpy rhythm and Christina Billotte’s whooping vocals encapsulate the band’s wound-up appeal. Also diverting is a surprisingly deliberate version of a glitter-rock favorite, here titled “Rebel Rebel, Bat Cat,” that sounds as much T. Rex as Bowie.

On the flip are two tunes by The Make*Up, which is scheduled to issue a Dischord platter next year. This outfit, the latest emigration of the Nation of Ulysses, recasts formerly sassy singer Ian Svenonius as James Brown, reaching for the stars with his falsetto, on “We’re Having a Baby.” On “This Is…Young Vulgarians,” however, he becomes James Chance, rasping to match a more jagged instrumental sound. As always with Svenonius’ projects, the two songs are impressive just for their conceptual audacity, but they seem a little fleeting for his new soul-man stance: They’re both over before the slow burn really begins to sizzle. The 7-inch is on Time Bomb, which doesn’t list its address anywhere on the sleeve or disc, but it’s available at such local stores as Go!

—Mark Jenkins