Wolf Parade | Expo 86 | Album Review

it's 1986...do you know where YOUR children are?

It's been too long. There's been too much music in between. Same old, same old. So let's get right to it. I love Wolf Parade's new album Expo 86. Like, so much. If I'm ever bored or tired of my other music, I throw it on. If I need something to play while I'm in the shower, I play the middle of the album. If someone asks me what my favorite album of this year is (there are maybe three people who might ask me that, and none of them have...but if they did!), I'd probably put Expo 86 in my top 3 right now.

Before I break this thing down track-by-track, as I usually do for albums I really love, let me take a minute to discuss the state of music reviews currently. Now, I'm a big fan of Pitchfork. However, I don't always feel like reading their reviews. There's a few reasons for that:

1.) They're long: yeah, they're a few paragraphs, maybe two or three for something not-that-interesting, but still, it's a lot of words. I love reading. If you read this at all, you probably like reading. I love writing. I'm a total hypocrite by calling them out for overly-long reviews. But we'll get to why they're unbearably long in a minute. For now, just ask yourself: why do I need to read eight hulking paragraphs about Arcade Fire's Suburbs? Wait, you mean I don't? That I could probably get through a song or two in the time it takes to read it? Weird.

2.) They have little to do with the music: even when they talk about the music, what are they actually saying about it? Are they just comparing it to something that's already out there? Are they talking about the music climate that currently exists around that genre/band/scene? Are they musing about something totally unrelated? Or are they telling you what songs sound good, what songs sound bad, what's alright, what they could've done better, and maybe, what kinds of things they're hearing in each song? Maybe it's just me, but I'm more apt to wanna read something that has lots of quotation marks in it. You know why? Because lots of quotation marks mean they're naming lots of songs...on the album. And if I'm not able to listen to the album, or if I wanna read a review about it, I wanna know what you think of the songs that make up the album. It's as easy as that. Try to cut down on all the extraneous BS. To use that Arcade Fire review as an example, the second-shortest paragraph contains the most quotation marks. Which means the paragraph containing the most song mentions is the second shortest of eight. That doesn't seem right to me.

3.) They don't correlate with the rating: it's often I'll read a review of an album rated 7.8, and it'll be largely glowing, with maybe one flaw mentioned. Why didn't it get something higher? Did the reviewer get to rate the album them self? Is the rating a consensus among the staff? Some clarity would be nice; even those video game and car magazines will tell you "the total score is not a cumulative score of how well the game/car did in individual areas - it is simply a total score we have assigned it". Those scores make sense to me, because at least they explained how they arrived to them. Pitchfork seems to lack that.

4.) They're too short: okay, this one flies in the face of the first point, so this is a critique of other review sites. I read a blog this week that would rate something out of 5, then write about two short paragraphs concerning the album. If you have the time to write as many reviews at once as this blog did, why not make the effort and give something good and in-depth? I can understand something so short for singles, but this is obviously much more than that. If you're gonna do yourself a disservice by limiting your rating scale to a five-point one, at least counter that with deeper writing. Those are just my thoughts.

5.) Maybe I'm just being a sourpuss and Pitchfork's not that bad and I'm just so busy in my life right now that I don't have time to read and appreciate their reviews like I used to.

Anyways, now that that's off my chest, let's get to the review:

"Cloud Shadow On The Mountain" | This song is the most Sunset Rubdown-y of the bunch I'd say. Spencer Krug's waw-waw voice is all over the map, and if I were doing the sequencing, I'd think they'd have better options to kick the album off with. Many of Krug's mentions of mythic creatures and sceneries abound, but like the better Sunset Rubdown tracks, the instrumentation keeps the whole thing chugging along and interesting. The guitars rip through the drum beats and punctuate the spaces in between Krug's grandiose statements ("you gotta jump, jump over the islands/like a gazelle"). There's enough screeching weirdness in the background to fill any voids, and the whole thing gives you about 10 seconds of respite in all. I can't stress the Sunset Rubdown connections enough though. Wolf Parade will always be Dan Boeckner and Spencer Krug coming together, but it's the differences between their side projects and the sounds they bring with them from those that set them apart - and at the same time, keep Wolf Parade albums interesting. We'll explore that more later on anyways.

"Palm Road" | The guitars instantly resonate happier on this track, and as expected, Boeckner's more laid-back voice leads the charge. I've gotta admit though: these two openers don't really do it for me. They've got the some of  the right elements there, but not the catchy anthemics of Wolf Parade's greater songs, especially the ones off Apologies To The Queen Mary (I like to pretend that the follow-up to that - and pre-cursor to this new album - At Mount Zoomer, never happened). Anyways, "Palm Road" doesn't really hit hard, and comes off more as a warm-up for Boeckner's usual bombastic-ness than anything else. Like he's holding something in reserve for the other songs.

"What Did My Lover Say? (It Always Had To Go This Way)" | Before Dan can get there though, Spencer brings what I think is his best performance to the album. The beat is an awesome back-and-forth rocker -- if anyone has seen Death Cab's Ben Gibbard perform, this beat is the equivalent of his on-the-spot, hip-rocking, odd-thing-going-on thing...alright, if you've seen him, then you know what I mean, if not, I'm no help here. Anyways, back to the song: it's got a few distinct sections, and Krug, as he seems to do in most of his tunes, lets his voice rise above all the other sounds, and the songs where he does that benefit from it. He has great tone, for as much as he vibrates it up and down, and you'll never mistake him for anyone else given his unique delivery. The guitars are at work again here, delivering wordless jabs to keep you on your toes, and there's this whole sense of them, along with the drums, constantly "driving" this album. It's a great sound that Wolf Parade have always had a grasp of, but never executed as well throughout - I think - as on Expo 86.


"Little Golden Age" | The previous song really starts what you could call the "meat" of this album; that great string of tunes that defines the collection and keeps your attention when it's essential an album does so. So on "Little Golden Age" (I think Katy Perry-song when I first hear it start up, not gonna lie), Dan builds upon his earlier offering, serving up an earnest stomper complete with some of the catchier guitar lines filling in the bars between his cryptic lyrics. Here's where I think Expo 86 excels by the way: even when it's trying to sound sad, it's still moving and it's still percussive and it's still awesome. Songs are constructed in a way that elicits emotion from you as a listener. When the notes drop, that usually a signal for sadness. Now, when you can take those drops and keep them exciting and - ultimately - not depressing, you've done something great with music. "Little Golden Age" has a lament to it, but that's lost in the instrumentation and "uh-oh"s and great guitar. This would also be a good place to point out that so far, the drumming has been very consistent on the album, if not spectacular. Wolf Parade is certainly a guitar-driven group.

"In The Direction Of The Moon" | I had a real thing for this song for a while. I still do. But I'm talking a thing where I'd come home and have to turn this on, just to hear it. It's Krug again, but this time, what really does it for me is the stellar keyboard stabs. And this is where I hesitate to talk about keyboards and guitars and all; we all know you can do a ton of stuff with electric guitars. Those guitar mentions I've made above then? For all I know, they could be keyboards. I'm still not that great at picking out individual sounds, other than for this all-too-easy and -encompassing idea of "catchiness". Anyways, there's wicked keyboard running through this song like a glowing line of contrasted stitching; it's not enough to totally draw your attention away from what it's holding together, but just by being there, it's making whatever it is that much better. The other hero of this song is the guy helping on the "I'll put my rockets away" vocals; they're another reason I'm so drawn to this tune. There's a slight lull for a minute plus on "Moon", and that's probably all that brings it down, but once it recovers from that, it's this onslaught of keyboard, marching drum, droning guitar, and Krug finally hiding his voice behind some of that, letting it do its thing. Even the "rockets" guy gets his chance to shine, no longer singing in unison with Krug. The ending is a bit different from the rest, building up then finishing kinda flat, but it takes nothing away from the rest of the song.

"Ghost Pressure" | The lead single from the album, and the one I've heard the band make reference to as their most danceable - even going so far as to say the working title for it was "Beyonce". It's certainly the most radio-ready, with Dan toning things down a bit and letting the song play out like a ride down a set of rapids, if I had to find the best descriptor for it. It starts off fine, picks up momentum, then it just sails through. The keyboards do a great job again here, to change things up between the choruses, and then add an electrified organ sound to the choruses themselves. All in all, this is probably the most straightforward track on the album: it's meant to get you moving, it's driven largely by the instruments and a few repeated lines, it's at this constant 8 out of 10 sound level, and then jacks it up to 10 out of 10 when it needs it. Wolf Parade could make a whole album of these; they wouldn't be expanding into new territory, but they wouldn't really be letting people down either.

"Pobody's Nerfect" | For me, this is where the album starts to slow down a bit. This song in particular is probably the most Mount Zoomer of the bunch, so while I don't not like it, I wish it was, you know...something else? It's technically sound, like I've heard At Mount Zoomer described before, but it doesn't do much for me other than when Dan picks the song up by its britches and shakes it with his "and you don't know how to stop it at all" lines. Oh, and he also says "we built this city on cocaine lasers", which might be my favorite line from anything all year. The song doesn't really hit its stride til about halfway through, where the big guitars come out and do their 80's-rock thing all up and down the strings. These guys can shred no matter the style, and they do a good job of showcasing it here on a tune that would otherwise be kinda boring if not for those guitars and a raucous finish.

"Two Men In New Tuxedos" | ...and here's the point where I wished Wolf Parade's songs were named with a little more Handsome Furs influence and a little less of Sunset Rubdown's. It is Krug's song though, so I guess his side project's naming rights win out. This tune just kinda does its thing, but functions like one of the more forgettable Sunset Rubdown tracks, and it's these times when you can clearly see the side projects' influences that I think Wolf Parade suffers from: Spencer should leave the grand theatrics to that group, and bring his foot-stomping, fist-pumping best to the Wolf Parade side. There's too much stop-and-start, too many up-and-downs, for this song to really grow on me, and not enough in the way of guitars/keyboards/drums to draw me back in. Probably the biggest miss on the album for me. But good for you Spencer. Get it out.

"Oh You, Old Thing" | I had a hankering to hear this one the other week; I dunno why, and it probably can't be considered one of the more stellar tracks on here, but I think that speaks to an album that's well put-together and demanding of multiple listens. You seem to discover something new and enticing every time through. In this particular tune, there's an interesting keyboard pattern starting it off, and Krug gets his turn on vocals again, though this time he's toned it down a bit. There's so much going on around him, and although I may have mentioned above that he really shines through when he lets his voice rise above everything else, there's other times when he can dial it back to a level appropriate for the song, and simply mesh with it like he's just another instrument. "Oh You, Old Thing" is odd, in that, even though it's a good song, it doesn't leap at you like most other great Wolf Parade songs ("Shine A Light", "Grounds For Divorce", among others); it just kinda vibes along, something which the songs on Expo 86 seem to do well it seems. Wolf Parade has really found themselves -- or at least, found themselves again, going back to the roots they so successfully showcased previously on Apologies To The Queen Mary.

"Yulia" | Wow, did Boeckner really restrain himself enough to only gives us one Handsome Furs-inspired track on this new Wolf Parade album? I mean, Spencer seemingly took as many liberties as he could bringing Sunset Rubdown into the picture, but Dan? What moderation. The triumphant guitars and galloping beat are there, and the snippy lines punctuate the "sense" (because I don't know if it's nostalgia, sadness, longing...what it is) the lyrics and their delivery are trying to bring to the surface. More than any of the other songs, this is the most pleasant listen on the album by far. Again, there's so much going on that it's hard to place exactly what works the best here and makes the song the standout it is. Is it the cymbals, oddly lacking on the other tunes? Boeckner's earnest vocals? The tom-tom? In the end, yeah, it's probably the percussion in one form or another. But rest assured: when you need to take the time to figure out which one of the many great things go towards making the song itself great, I think you're doing something right.

"Cave-O-Sapien" | The longest track on here, and the closer. It's pretty upbeat, this time propelled by the fast-forward of the drumming. Yes, I just made up that phrase. Krug is like Sonic The Hedgehog here, nimbly running his way up and down the walls of the obstacle course that is the music in front of him. That music though: Wolf Parade consistently do a great job of making melodies out of instrumental lines, delivering just as much feeling and distinction through those as they do via the lead duo's voices. There's tension in the guitars here, though totally that video-game kind if we're talking Sonic; it's fake tension, just manufactured to get things going. You know you're never in any danger of the song falling apart around you, same as you're never worried you yourself are going to be injured while playing a video game. Spencer's cries of "I got you/til you're gone" are the real hook here, followed closely (and literally) by the odd-sounding electro stabs of the keyboard. There's almost a joking sense to this whole song, from the title to the words to the sounds. These guys are having fun, and you can tell.

Thankfully, by manufacturing a return to their former glory - albeit, short on songs emulating Apologies For The Queen Mary's rocking anthems that a generation of indie kids embraced as their own - and balancing the triumvirate of Wolf Parade, Sunset Rubdown and Handsome Furs in relatively equal parts, Dan, Spencer and the boys have restored that exciting feeling to their albums with Expo 86. So maybe more of the same old, same old isn't always that bad.

this was hard, it was dumb, we should do it again

it's not "The Rural Saskatchewan Advantage," cause there isn't one

In my constantly expanding list of music I've been disgustingly late on, I'm doing a bit better if you judge by The Rural Alberta Advantage. I actually picked up quite quick on them from hearing "Don't Haunt This Place" from a blog that now escapes my memory. It was back in April of this year...and I loved it. Everything about it. I never tired of hearing it, it was a perfect jam, short and sweet -- but in usual fashion, I never gave their album Hometowns a chance, even after a glowing 8.0/10 review from Pitchfork, probably my most trusted source for musical advice. Late in November though, after a happenchance incident I'll describe in a bit, I decided I had to get the rest of the album and give it a spin.

In a bit of my defense, "The Deathbridge In Lethbridge" was the second song I heard off Hometowns, and it's probably the one black sheep from the outstanding tracklist. But instead of getting into all that, you know what? If any group's gonna get the song-by-song album review treatment, I have no problem giving it to The Rural Alberta Advantage:

"The Ballad Of The RAA" | With such a self-referencing name, it's a pretty good track to start an album with. The fast-paced and muted drum kick gets things going, and Neils Edenloff's voice exhibits itself in a way that you're either like "yeah, I really like this guy, this is gonna be good" -- or basically the exact opposite reaction. You can feel the emotion and strain in his delivery, and the "singing in a barn" exhibition of it during the a capella ending is icing on the cake, along with the triangle tinkles playing like snowflakes above the insistent drumming. I've heard that he gives off a Jeff Mangum-like vibe (of Neutral Milk Hotel), but having heard maybe one or two of NMH's tunes, it's something I'd have to look more into before I could say one way or the other.

"Rush Apart" | There's something endlessly charming about the acoustic guitar and Edenloff's far-away-sounding vocals that start off "Rush Apart." In an album of comparatively short songs (most are in the two-minute range), this is the second-shortest at 1:56, but still manages to flesh itself out into something more than respectable. It's like a campfire tune that managed to convince an entire drumset to make the trek. When Nils says "it's hard to know what's right/I need you tonight," it's one of the love-soaked references on an album chock-full of them. You'd love to know who hurt him this badly, because there has to be a place where all this creativity stems from. And on that note, this is probably not an album you want to be listening to while you're with someone; it functions much better when you're trying to get over someone.

"The Deathbridge In Lethbridge" | The RAA does punk? The vocals have an almost-evil bent to them, no doubt helped by the line "you let me down, I let you down/with your grandfather in the ground." Not to say it's not a good song - it is - but it seems kind of out of place with the rest of the tracks on Hometowns. The others tend to have a more or less melancholy feel to them, instead of the seemingly revengeful tone of "Deathbridge." At least they named it the right way though. Let's skip ahead, cause as mentioned above, this one pretty much turned me off The RAA the first few times I laid ears on it.

"Don't Haunt This Place" | The track that pretty much got it started for me with these guys. It's got that same upbeat and stuttering drumming (courtesy of part-time Woodhands member Paul Banwatt...a fact I found out when I caught both groups at Osheaga this summer), and if I ever said "Sun In An Empty Room" was the best song to play if you were leaving an old apartment Friends-style (and I did say that), this would certainly be a close runner-up -- especially if you shared said apartment with a significant other. The lyrics change up confusingly between declaring the whole ordeal as "hard" and "fun" then switching to "hard" and "dumb" effortlessly. Keyboardist Amy Cole makes one of her few cameos providing precious backing vocals, and the emotions are laid bare for all to see with crisp-clear lyricism.

"The Deadroads" | For all the acoustic guitar abounding on Hometowns, you can't really hear many familiar strains from other songs, a rarity when all you've got to work with are six strings and some chords. The drumming again makes itself well-known here, but I'm not gonna take all the credit for picking up on it; Pitchfork pointed it out pretty well in their review, and I can't help hearing the album without focusing strongly on the superb percussion. It's much the same way I listen to The New Pornographers' Twin Cinema; I've always been a fan of nerdishly drumming along to the beat, and that album along with Hometowns provide me with ample and exemplary opportunities. The "oooo-oooo-oooo-oooooooo"s add that little something extra to this tune, and Nils brings his now-dependable rakish croon to the forefront once again.

"Drain The Blood" | If "Don't Haunt This Place" first turned me on to the group, and "The Deathbridge In Lethbridge" almost turned me off of them, then "Drain The Blood" was that track that truly sold me on The RAA and sucked me in enough to get Hometowns. Even at 2:50 long, this is one of those strange tracks that feels much shorter than that, a quick-burst of sound and passion. It's one of the few where Edenloff showcases more than one side of his voice: the mid-range delivery in the verses, the more throaty and alternately pleading vocals of the chorus, and the outright desperate croaks in the break the song so abruptly builds towards.

Whereas most songs are rollercoaster rides, with multiple ups and downs, "Drain The Blood" comes off like those super-fast thrill rides, that speed you up until you think you can't go any faster, then it's all over like that. It also signals the album turning more to a deemed cohesiveness: where the first few songs kind of stand apart, and prepare you for some cross-Alberta road trip, "Drain The Blood" is like where the road-trip comes to a head, and you know you can't really look at the people you're with quite the same again for the rest of the trip/album.

"Luciana" | In reference to the above, this is kind of that "night after" track, where you can just imagine having a few too many at the local dive bar, and The RAA playing this tune up on stage the whole while. The drums really stand out here for me, the crashing cymbals accentuating Nils' now-whining voice with a vigour that's kind of lacking from the vocal delivery (not something you can say often about the vocals on Hometowns). The horn section also makes an appearance, showing The RAA's versatility and continually-surprising take on alternative rock: they do everything well. Like it's not even fair; they pick and choose their styles and pull them all off expertly, like they've been at this much longer than the four years it's been since they formed. Every track is a rewarding listen, and the album as a whole is that much more listenable because of that.

"Frank, AB" | They also tend to nail those little things that bring their songs to that "next level." They again employ some "oooo-oooo"s, this time with male vocals, and add in the right amount of bass, snare, and everything else that makes their instrumentation just lush enough without being overpowering. The lonesomeness of "Frank, AB" is easy to hear, like it's the hangover "morning after" to the above track. The minute-long a capella at the end is especially moving, with Amy joining in with Nils ever so quietly, like the hand on his back as he's getting it all off his chest.

As an aside, before I wrote this entire review, I never really considered Hometowns as anything more than a love-and-loss-tinged album, but the closer I listen and analyze it, the road trip analogy and all the emotions and scenery that goes with it makes more and more sense, as even some of the next few tracks will show. The fact it works on so many levels is another great thing about the compilation. Heck, for all the place-name-dropping going on, just about the only thing I haven't picked up on yet is the painting of visual scenery you'd assume would come from the album's evocative cover art.

"The Air" | A swooning acoustic guitar and piano-inflected slow-it-down kinda tune? Yeah, I guess there truly is a bit of everything on here. "The Air" literally clears the air, even though it states "the air is unbearably harmful tonight." The clean slate provided by the sparse instrumentation lets the piano shine and the guitar slide along with purpose, keeping a calming quiet over everything before the album itself slows the pace down a bit. Not much to say here; you just have to check out Hometowns and hear for yourself.

"Sleep All Day" | Of all the tunes, this is probably my favorite to drum along to, with the exceptionally nimble snare providing the perfect balance to the organ-like keyboard and longing vocals. For the monotony of the track (over 3:46, it never really goes up, but it never creeps that far down either) it keeps your attention admirably. I really can't rave enough about the diversity of this album. Even though there's a few of these slower numbers, they're never done the same way, and all the originality and creativity in the world seeps out of them in a way I've heard from few groups, let alone on their debut full-length. I have all the faith in the world that The RAA will be able to bang out another album on endlessly enjoyable folk-rock-pop along the same lines as Hometowns, without copying any of the essence or ideas from the latter.

"Four Night Rider" | The shortest tune on here, by one second over "Rush Apart," you can truly feel the frenetic pace set forth by the energetic drumming, and when everything kind of explodes right before the end, you can easily hear the full musical force of the trio in a kind of last gasp effort to convince you that, hey, if you don't like us by now, we're really gonna try our damnedest anyways. Amy's vocals come through the strongest right before that section, drowning out Edenloff's for the first and only time on the album. There's nothing on "Four Night Rider" that hints towards the drawn-out and boring "four night bike ride out of town" to Edmonton professed by the band. There's even an underlying triumph to it all that's a little hard to explain on here, so again, you've really gotta check out the full album.

"Edmonton" | If it was all building up to something, Hometowns' true piece-du-resistance is this tune, just by an edge over the other amazing standouts on the album. It starts off boisterous and doesn't let up until the tambourine breaks in around 1:45; but it's just setting you up for the re-build, where the percussion builds back up again, the guitar becomes more insistent, Edenloff's voice gets that familiar strain, the lyrics take their most powerful turn, and then after the once-through, it slows down once more into the emotional "and I will never try/to forget you're not alive," then breaks out into full-force once again for the victory lap around the whole damn countryside.

On a note again: I write each song's review while I listen to it on repeat. It's a common thing I do whenever I review any song or album, because it puts me in the best mood to write about each individual track. With every other song on here though, I've had to take multiple listens to encapsulate what I really want to say about it; with "Edmonton" however, I banged it out in almost precisely the 3:52 run-time of the song. I'm not trying to say that I'm a fast typer or that I'm so good at describing songs or whatever -- my point is that "Edmonton" is so immediate, so good, that it can't help but being taken at face value, because it's raw emotion on a musical level. Plus it kinda gets to me in a way, so for whatever reason, I wouldn't wanna go through the whole process of listening to it again, with that slow build and everything. Take that for what you will.

"In The Summertime" | Much like the love interest in this tune, we're done. I have some personal interest in this song actually, and every time I listen to Hometowns all the way through, it's always "Edmonton" and "In The Summertime" that get to me the most. I don't know if it's just where I am right now in my life, or if The Rural Alberta Advantage just crafts songs so damn well that they call to mind feelings and emotions you didn't think could well up so easily like that. It doesn't make much sense for me to try and explain this one, and I say that just as it closes out its 2:38 song length.

I don't think I've ever been so emotionally invested in an album to be honest, and it kind of pains me to say that, because I wonder where I was way back in July when this thing actually came out and I had my chance. But I guess life's all about those missed chances...but also about the joy you feel when you're still able to get what you desire, even after it's seemingly too late. Sorry.

(Buy Hometowns here: Amazon)

look in the book...

Pointless musical trivia: Pink Mountaintops' members come from the same collective of artists that form Vancouver's Black Mountain -- which also produced the indelible Lightning Dust outfit. It's like a gift that keeps giving. I've already broken down some of Lightning Dust's and Black Mountain's previous work, and as much as I appreciated some elements of their music, Pink Mountaintops seem to take the best of both groups, with folk-inflected and sometimes plodding rock music, along with more uptempo jaunts and cathedral filling wails.

"Execution" and "Vampire" are the singles already released from Pink Mountaintops' album Outside Love, and I knew what to expect from those songs having already heard them, but when I delved into the album itself, I was pleasantly surprised with one track in particular. "Holiday"is outfitted with harmonica, tinkles, acoustic guitar, and a campfire melody -- something that's a bit of a change of pace for a group with its feet well-set in the comforts of straightforward rock and dreamy psychedelia. I mean, I'm talking like I'd toast s'mores to this tune.

Pink Mountaintops - Holiday

It's actually a pretty mournful song in lyrical content, lamenting friends who have left "on holiday," and preaching about bastards and cowards, but you'd never guess from the sea-shanty-like sway of the thing, drowned in expressive yet almost monotonous singing. In view of the Peaches-sounding guitars and garage-rock drums of cuts like "The Gayest Of Sunbeams" (yes, you read that right) and ballroom twirls of "Come Down," Pink Mountaintops certainly make use of the many musical styles they have under their belts, and are no worse for it. The whole album still sounds like a whole piece, with good flow from start to finish and a good number of strong tracks.

Look at that. I set out to write a little snippet about "Holiday," and I ended up with a mini album review on Outside Love. But it felt organic and natural, a lot like Pink Mountaintops' music.

the xx | album review

I really can't say anything that hasn't been said about these guys. They're the hottest new thing out of London. They've all only just turned 20 years old. They're seemingly the greatest indie wunderkinds since the Strokes almost a decade ago now. They've been featured everywhere from being named "Best New Music" on Pitchfork, to freakin' sports-centric ESPN. They're the xx (not "double x," just "ex ex").

So I'm not gonna bore you with details about the group. They're young, they're awesome, wise and talented beyond their years, blah blah blah. Guess what? It all comes down to sex appeal, believe it or not. I've been quite averse and wary of the hype surrounding the group for months now, so articles I've read on them are few and far between. The sex appeal may have very well been mentioned (I know for a fact it has on Pitchfork's review, with the site stating that the songs are "mostly about sex"), but maybe moreso as a side effect, than the actual cause of their overall appeal.

Romy Madley Croft, one half of the guy-girl vocalists in the xx, shines as an uninteresting (uninterested?) and disaffected vocalist, flipping between sorry and flirty. She's the mood-swinging girlfriend, who loves you and lusts for you one day, and she's an emotional and apologizing wreck the next. The songs are all so minimal that the vocals are predominant enough so as to give the impression you've simply got the TV turned on to "The OC," but you're in another room. Basically, all you're getting is the dialogue from the show, with some moody music. That's about the easiest way to sum the xx up.

Is that meant disparagingly? Not in the least. I love these guys. Just absolutely head over heels for them. Yes, I was totally wary of the hype in the beginning. Didn't even bother reading the whole review on Pitchfork I don't think. I was sick of hearing that a bunch of minimalist teens were the big thing right now, especially after a summer plagued by minimalist crap being hyped far beyond its expiry date. The problem with all that crap though? The lo-fi aesthetic that seems so necessary nowadays. Barely-heard lyrics. Fuzzed-out guitars. Short and spurt-ish blasts that are gone before you can truly squeeze all the joy out of them.

The greatest thing about the xx? You guessed it: none of the above. When I finally got on their good side, it was from listening to "Heart Skips A Beat" on hypem's Top 20, and then going to the blog featuring that one and hearing "Islands" and "VCR," loving all three. The songs are unequivocally crisp-sounding, the lyrics almost-whispered in many instances, but clearly heard. The guitars and bass are by turns jangling and mood-setting. Aside from the instrumental intro, not a song below 2:30. It's just an impossibly and impeccably good album, especially for a debut, and especially for the age of the curators and performers.

Back to that sex appeal though. It's just oozing here, and it's not in the subtle and sultry ways that older and more mature bands dabble in. This foursome is all about getting it right now, in the most direct way possible. "If you want me/Let me know" is the sentiment echoed so straightforwardly on the most back-and-forth exchange on the disc, "Stars." I read that the xx are influenced by R&B. I unfailingly am unable to pick out hip-hop and R&B when it comes to any form of rock; it all just sounds like good rock music to me, so hell if I think the xx sound like R&B. But I do know nothing makes for betting make-out sessions than throwing on some heartfelt R&B ballads. These kids seem to take that one step further, fleshing out the physical experience over 11 tracks and 38 minutes. It's bedroom rock, if ever such a thing existed.

It's going to be extremely interesting to see where these guys take it from here. They could implode from the pressures and hype and never make another album, let alone one approaching the likable qualities of their eponymous debut. They could add more members, a string section, some industry all-stars, and end up playing the kind of all-encompassing and seizing music that a collective like Broken Social Scene does so effectively. They certainly have the right mindset for that kind of music, and their current tracks certainly have enough quiet space for that kind of arrangement to bring out that little extra in the music.

Final verdict? This may not be a completely awe-inspiring album, or even on the level of some of my favorites. But it's a fun album, in more ways than one. You can throw it on at any time during the day...though it works best at night, whether by yourself and feeling a little lonesome and appreciative of the night, or for those fun nights when you might have someone else with you filling up that lonely space.

Song recommendations? Too many to make. I already mentioned attention-getters "Islands," "VCR" and "Heart Skipped A Beat," but there is actually not one bad song on the album. I mean that. "Basic Space" and "Crystalised" are actually the xx's two singles out right now, and I didn't even mention them yet. That's five really solid tracks up front. I'm on my ninth listen of the album in three days, and nothing's lost its replay value. I mean, just get out and get the whole thing, you can't go wrong. If you're not convinced though, here's the track I initially fell in love with, alongside another standout:

The xx - Islands

The xx - Heart Skips A Beat

Arkells - Jackson Square album review

First things first. I'm breaking down this album old-school: track by track. Secondly, to give a bit of perspective on the band, I always tell people that Arkells sound like The Trews...if The Trews were better. Basically, they take all that catchy, in-your-face, two-guitar, bass, drums and keyboard assault, and subtract all the cock-rock and dumb lyrics. The final product ends up being a really pleasing and almost cathartic experience in modern "indie rock" music.

These guys have been playing shows all over Canada recently, and it's only a matter of time before they blow up on the national scene. Their live shows are packed with energy, and they play great sets full of songs off Jackson Square, along with some improvisations and crowd-involving gimmicks that just add to the fun that accompanies catching these guys in concert. On to the album though:

"Deadlines" | As inauspicious of an album-starter as you could pick. The slow drumming build-up, a few crashes, all the instruments coming in, and then Max's voice giving a little intro of what it's like to work the corporate life. This song actually sets the theme pretty well for the album, as it's a very working-class band putting together a very working-class album. "Deadlines" is fast and short, but if it doesn't pump you up for the rest of the album, you might want to check your pulse.

"Pullin' Punches" | This one picks up right where "Deadlines" trails off, albeit with a much happier tilt. "Pullin' Punches" is a bit of a heartfelt rocker, a little ode to that truthful girl in your life, with a hint of sympathy in there for all she's been through. There's a few good break-downs of the song, a lot of pacing changes, and a sense of urgency throughout - which sums up Arkells pretty well in fact. This is a group that performs with a sense of urgency, like they know the spotlight could fade any minute, and they make the best of it while they can. Of course, that could also be because the last time I saw them, they only had a half-hour to belt out their set...

"Oh, The Boss Is Coming" | OTBIC veers off a darker road, but keeps that same fast pace and worker's mentality set out before it. This song is probably lead singer Max Kerman's most impassioned vocal performance, with his yelps and throaty singing conveying perfectly the very literal anxiousness of an office worker who's probably not up to much, and is constantly looking over their shoulder to make sure the boss isn't catching them doing so. OTBIC is one Arkells have taken and extended a bit live, with Max leading a neat call-and-response with the audience during the "punching in/punching out" lines.

"Ballad of Hugo Chavez" | I may have mentioned "Ballad" on here before, but it's certainly one of the stand-out tracks on Jackson Square. Arkells aren't one of those groups that put obscure names to their songs for art's sake; this is quite literally a lyrical re-telling of Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez's trials and tribulations preceding his rise to power...all told over the scat of a saxophone and pop-y piano chords. Again, I'm a sucker for piano, so this song can do no wrong by me - and between the "hey hey hey!"s and "in the niii-iiight/of the sun"s that establish the catchiest chorus these guys have, I don't see how it ever could.

"Tragic Flaw" | It's a debut album, so there's gonna be some filler in Jackson Square, but thankfully, they built the album so that it comes in after four rousing jams. Some people might like this song a little more than I do, but it just doesn't do anything for me. It's a bit of a downer in some parts, but what it does the worst is pander to a lot of what's out there already on the radio, in terms of Canadian rock groups who are trying just a tad too hard to make it. It still has some of the signature Arkells melodies, but it's certainly nothing special.

"No Champagne Socialist" | Still continuing the worker trend of the album, NCS starts with a great harmonica blast, and then slows down for Max to set the scene: "let the record show, it's 1964/in the city of New York." Another sympathetic song, but this time for the guy trying to live on "both sides of the track" - a well-to-do Jewish kid who doesn't want the same life his family's had for so long. You'd think the subject matter would certainly curtail the tune from being played at concerts with any amount of success, but between the impassioned harmonica playing, the well-done southern rock (these guys know their rock, and don't just stick to one kind of it), and the awesome guitar solo closing the song out, "No Champagne Socialist" is kind of Arkells' ace in the hole.

"Abigail" | I guess this is how a rock ballad like "Tragic Flaw" should've been done. Which is really saying something for Arkells - they may make mistakes as a young group, but within the span of one song, they've already corrected it. The instrumentality of all their tunes really keeps them going, even when the lyrics are busy painting a story or telling a cautionary tale. "Abigail" tinges with sorrow for a girl who doesn't quite understand why the guy in her life does the things he does, and may be feeling a little lost, as evidenced by "where did all the good plans go?" Add to the mix a bit of a heartstring-tugging go at the guitar, and Arkells save yet another sappy tune from coming off all too emo and self-pleasing. I can't really recall them playing "Abigail" live, but they certainly have the tools to turn it into something concert-worthy, even in its present form.

"Heart Of The City" | Probably not one of my favorite tracks off Jackson Square. A little too earnest and lyrically stuttering for my liking. It also veers off the path the rest of the album sets out, meaning it's a bit abstract and doesn't really follow the story-telling/workforce/down-trodden girl routine the rest of the album touts. "Heart Of The City" wouldn't be so bad if I actually knew what singer Max Kerman's trying to get at in the big picture, and also if the rest of the band was able to elevate the song to the level something with this kind of title deserves.

"I'm Not The Sun" | These few songs right here point out I guess, the, uh, "Tragic Flaw" of Jackson Square (sorry). Whereas most albums would just be hitting their stride around the mid-point, it becomes clear right about here that Arkells did that with the first half of the album, and sadly the second half suffers for that. "I'm Not The Sun" is too much of a slow-burner, coming down to a level even Kings Of Leon on painkillers might feel is a tad too lethargic. For anyone familiar with Only By The Night, this is Arkells' version of "Closer" or "Cold Desert," those largely instrumental and emotive jaunts into territory best reserved for groups who know how to do that better (think Coldplay). Otherwise, KoL and Arkells should just stick to the straightforward rock that got them to where they are in the first place.

"The Choir" | By this point, it's like they're slapping you in the face. You were really pumped up by the first half of the album, waiting to see where these rising stars were going to take it next...then they slow it down for "I'm Not The Sun" and keep it at that pace yet again. Max just sounds sad and forlorn here, and the track really only moves in fits and bursts. The sappy-sounding chorus is a zone Arkells should stay out of, and the church-and-death tinged lyrics don't do them much justice either. There may be great intention behind this song, but the execution is sadly lacking.

"John Lennon" | Just as it's all becoming a bit too much to bear, one of my favorite tracks of 2009 shows up to save the album. Like a lot of the songs I like the most, it's sometimes hard to put into words what it is that makes me love it so much. There's a bit of saxophone jumping in and adding the right amount of diversity, there's the rousing "I'm John Lennon/in '67" chorus, the persistent keyboard stabs, the pick-it-up-and-rock-it-out interludes, the slow-it-down "I'm so lost...and I live just around the corner!" right before the chorus, and the side-to-side sway of the band during the chorus itself. "John Lennon" is full of everything that's right about Arkells, and has the most diverse presentation of their skills on Jackson Square. In concert, the false ending is that much better, the actual ending is the high point of their shows, and Max looks like he's possibly having the most fun of anyone up there relaying the story of a drunken night on the town.

"Blueprint" | This along with "John Lennon" really dispells the bad taste in your mouth coming from the middle third of the album. Again, I don't think they play it live (probably because the sax is featured a little more prominently here, and they don't tour with a sax player) but there's no reason they couldn't. The stadium-rock ready chorus of "No I ain't/gonna fear/the new year!" and the chugging band behind Max make for a most optimistic end to a great debut album. With the catchy choruses, great musicianship, and attention-grabbing concerts they have going for them, Arkells certainly have no reason to fear anything, let alone a new year for the boys to prove themselves to rock fans all over Canada.

Arkells on MySpace

Jackson Square on Amazon