Its not often that I get excited about new music coming out of Canada (Neil Young excepted), but this week I had the pleasure of reviewing a release by a six-piece from Montreal called The Dears. As with previous postings about music the review for The Otago Daily Times has been pasted below. I enjoyed this album immensly as I'm sure my review spells out:
Canada’s latest music revelation The Dears, are somewhat unfairly pigeonholed as an indie band. While this may not be such a bad thing in certain circles, the moniker really does their sound an injustice. Gang of Losers deserves so much more than any simple genre classification.
Fronted by the extraordinary Murray Lightburn on lead vocals, this six piece from Montreal have a real knack for nailing the nuance of instantly memorable pop/rock hooks. The album sounds really familiar, but not in a way that it is instantly apparent. Lightburn does have an uncanny tendency to mimic the best moments of quintessential British lads Damon Albarn and Paul Weller. However, this is not blatant plagiarism, just good fortune.
Incredibly dark lyrical themes are embellished with brutal guitar raking, subtle keyboard washes, and ethereal three part harmonies. Just as every other sensitive artist seems to be commenting on the state of the world at the moment, The Dears are no different. Sure, it would be nice to have rock bands singing about their crotches once again, all this global conspiracy stuff can get a bit heavy. Thankfully, for those so inclined, the lyrics are on the enclosed booklet. Leave meaning at the door and let Lightburn mould the words into great shapes to fit the uplifting beats. When he searches for the upper registers of his vocal capability, the resulting melodies are quite hypnotic.
Fear made the world go ‘round is not only the standout, but also quite simply one of the single best tracks I have heard all year. Whites Only Party is a trippy little ditty that is somewhat poignant as the black Lightburn sings whimsically, “Don’t say I’m paranoid, it’s more like just annoyed, maybe a bit destroyed”. If there is any justice left in Lightburn’s bleak worldview, then this Gang of Losers deserves to be heard by a large audience. And if that isn’t a blatant plug, then the Australian/New Zealand version of Gang of Losers features a couple of exclusive extra tracks.
Rating: 4.5 stars.
3 comments:
My nationalism is sparked. Going out to buy the album right now.
HEY! granted we have produced celine dion and anne murray, but what about cohen?
Sure, you can have Cohen with a hot bath and a knife to sever your wrists. But, I think we are making a glaring omission talking about Canadian music without mentioning Alanis, gee I miss those tales of bad boyfriends and love gone wrong.
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