Islands
A Sleep & A Forgetting
(Anti)
Forget the mini-epics and catchy pop songs this time around. On the fourth Islands album, Nick Thorburn is a-hurtin'. And the material he has written this time around reflects his state of mind.
A Sleep & A Forgetting is a product of the end of a relationship, as Thorburn has acknowledged in a statement accompanying the release. It's a breakup album filled with recurring themes of loss, distance, regret and emotional numbness. "The ease with which I sleep tends to frighten me," Thorburn sings in the disc's final moments, at the end of "Same Thing."
Somehow, though, it all goes down easy, thanks to a surprising sweetness in the music. Recorded in less than two weeks, these 11 tracks have a first-take freshness and a stripped-down cleanliness that adds a hopeful counterpoint to bleak sentiments like, "If Penny rolls away, I will have lost everything in many subtle ways," from the delicate and soulful "This Is Not a Song," in which Thorburn also identifies himself by name.
At times, the disc -- clocking in at a highly manageable 37 minutes -- feels like a whisper of an album, a resigned sigh from someone who is beginning to believe that the worst is behind him.
"No Crying," with its crisp sound and a chord progression that sounds like a throwback to the 1950s (in a Jonathan Richman kind of way) is a fine example. The singer, once again disturbed by his inability to tap into his emotions, finally allows healing tears to come as the song ends.
"Oh Maria" is built on a recurring nightmare experienced by Buddy Holly's widow, who dreamt of being at the site of the plane crash that claimed her husband's life. It's a grim, haunting evocation of loss, partly sung in a melodic, gentle falsetto.
The group does manage to pick up the pace, at times. The insistent piano-pounding that introduces and anchors "Never Go Solo" comes close to sounding like Queen on a day off, while "Hallways," with its backbeat, handclaps and harmonies, is catchy, uptempo pop. And the garage-band-at-the-circus riff-rocker "Can't Feel My Face," in spite of the despair in its sentiments, will have you bobbing your head, at the very least.
In the end, though, this is a musically unassuming, almost self-effacing transitional effort. Listenable as it may be, most of its tracks evaporate quickly and leave little impression. The most memorable is "Lonely Love," a softly strummed, almost country-flavoured ballad that cleverly alludes to Paul Simon's "Crazy Love Vol. II."
Thorburn has described this album as his interpretation of soul music. If heartbreak is the stock in trade of both, he might have something there. But as for the kind of staying power we expect from real soul, the future hasn't completely brightened.
Rating: 3 out of 5
--Bernard Perusse, Postmedia News
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Dirty Ghosts
Metal Moon
(Last Gang Records)
Allyson Baker sings with the right amount of snarl and spit to remind you of Elastica's heyday. The rhythm section of bassist Carson Banks, drummer Michael Urbano and programmer Aesop Rock insures that the beats are razor sharp and pounding. Essentially a power trio with producer in tow, this is meticulously crafted music that certainly doesn't follow any of the prevailing trends of the moment but certainly deserves the buzz its generating online. Undeniably reminiscent of the late '80s/early '90s with its frequent reggae basslines and angular hooks, the 10 tracks don't ever disappoint but they are familiar sounding enough that they don't totally catch fire either. Chances are this is great live.
Rating: 3 out of 5
--Stuart Derdeyn, Postmedia News
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The Internet
Purple Naked Ladies
(Odd Future)
The latest from the Odd Future stable is not at all what you might expect after hearing Tyler, The Creator's Goblin and such. This is like some kind of throwback album to the days of Soul II Soul trip-hop and ambient electro-R&B. I half expected to hear Tricky turn up. Yep, the debut from Syd the Kyd and Matt Martians is loaded up with love poetry. Tracks such as "She Dgaf" or "Lincoln" earn the disc its parental advisory. That said, this is not the violent, woman-bashing material that has put this group in the soup. It's blunted, sensual and really easy to listen to.
Rating: 3 out of 5
--Stuart Derdeyn, Postmedia News
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Amos Lee
As the Crow Flies
(Blue Thumb)
With this six-song EP, singer-songwriter Amos Lee delivers a bunch of outtakes from last year's chart-topper, Mission Bell. As with the parent recording, members of Calexico are in the support band, and that group's Joey Burns produced. Stylistically speaking, there are no surprises: slow, leisurely ballads like "Simple Things" and "May I Remind You" are solidly in the folk and blues genre, while the spry, melodic "Say Goodbye" is a breezy delight with a country influence. The highlight, however, is the soulful "There I Go Again," which closes the album. Without question, the disc is basically a footnote, but its songs nonetheless have a stately charm that makes it palatable as a stand-alone project.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
--Bernard Perusse, Postmedia News
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Shearwater
Animal Joy
(Sub Pop)
Shearwater's previous three albums -- a very loose, very dramatic trilogy in thrall to the natural world -- were glorious panoramas whose grace was pierced by occasional terror. So it would be revisionism to suggest Animal Joy's frequent claustrophobia is a complete departure, but when the heart-racing clatter of "Breaking the Yearlings" reaches its pinnacle, this certainly sounds like a band renewed: leaner, more immediate and far more visceral. Everything sounds pressed up against your ear, from frontman Jonathan Meiburg's elastic tenor to Samsonian percussionist Thor Harris' drums, so everything carries an incredible intimacy. The creeping "Open Your Houses (Basilisk)" and "Insolence's" ominous mutations honour Shearwater's addictive air of mystery, while "Animal Life's" inspirational crescendo and "Star of the Age's" endless horizon are both capable of offering the breakthrough this band so richly deserves.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
--Jordan Zivitz, Postmedia News
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