BEYOND BRONSKI

Jimmy Somerville’s vocal range of preference is so high that his pitch is sometimes mistaken by the unsuspecting for a woman’s soprano. That singing voice--which he uses 99% of the time--and a grim set of gay-consciousness lyrics were the chief novelties in Somerville’s old group, Bronski Beat, but his new unit, the 11-piece Communards--which made its local debut Sunday at the Palace--adds some welcome musical eclecticism to the list of novelties, and seems a far more fun and interesting bunch for it.

Styles at Sunday’s concert ranged from Bronski-like disco-rock to jazzy sax-accompanied territory to delicate ballads backed by a real, live string quartet. If you didn’t like one Communards style, it wouldn’t be too long before another one. The single constant you couldn’t escape was Somerville’s voice, the band’s built-in love-it-or-leave-it factor.