Seattle's Jack And The Dull Boy are a prog-metal band and they're set to release their refreshingly retro debut album, Failure In Three Parts, on November 19. Today the band is sharing "Maniac", a cover of Michael Sembello's hit from the Flashdance film and soundtrack.

Here's what the band had to say about "Maniac": "Jack And The Dull Boy say they obviously have a lot in common with ‘80s legend Michael Sembello in that they’re bearded, slightly stocky, and not particularly photogenic. What’s maybe not as obvious is that the original version of ‘Maniac’ is a heavy metal song dressed in ‘80s synth-pop clothing. Chord progressions, key signature (Eb minor), guitar solo in the bridge, all these ingredients beg the question, ‘Are you sure Steve Harris didn’t write this?’ Jack and the Dull Boy seems to have had some fun connecting the dots between the genres.”

Jack and the Dull Boy exists at the intersection of hard rock, heavy metal, and progressive pop. With their debut release, Failure in Three Parts, the Seattle duo has lovingly crafted an album for an alternate universe in which classic metal guitar tones are mainstream, and fans of metal prefer clean vocals with sing-along choruses.

Seventeen years ago, Devon Summers (songwriter, guitarist, and reluctant vocalist) somehow managed to trick virtuoso drummer Aaron Nicholes into joining forces for the now defunct punk/metal outfit Scorpiknox. Since then, they’ve remained close pals even after taking separate paths in both the Chicago and Seattle underground rock scenes. Aaron Nicholes has toured in support of KMFDM with the band Legion Within, earned an AVN nomination for best score of a feature film (starring Dita von Teese), and has performed live at both Bumbershoot and the Capitol Hill Block Party. By contrast, Devon Summers is proficient in both MS Word and Excel and has excellent communication skills as well as an uncommon attention to detail. When the duo recently found themselves back in the rehearsal space together, mostly as an excuse to drink beer, Jack and the Dull Boy was born.

Science tells us that 80s and 90s thrash metal guitars are in fact the best sounding of all the guitars throughout space and time. In addition, many studies have shown that most everything else about modern metal has become a bit stale. In response to this crisis of genre conformity, Failure in Three Parts abandons many stagnant metal production cliches while keeping the soul of butt-rock guitar riffage alive and well.

Look for Failure In Three Parts everywhere on November 19.