 |
|
|
|
|
| mission. subscribe. live. blogs. study. visualart. music. film. store. advertise. contribute. contact. |
|
Classics
Archives
Submissions
Compilation series?
Search
our site for a review, |
Liberator 4.4
The Toronto-based art ensemble that jump started the Canadian indie rock takeover in 2002 with the release of Pitchfork approved You Forgot It In The People make a stunning return with this self-titled follow-up. The dozen or so member band led by guitarist/vocalist Kevin Drew and guitarist/bassist Brendan Canning celebrate the joy of indie rock via super heroes Yo La Tengo, Flaming Lips, Stereolab and My Bloody Valentine simultaneously, without pretension. With a supporting cast of elite Canadian artists including Feist, The Stars, Murray Lightburn (The Dears), K-OS, Emily Haines (Metric), they deliver the one of the year’s most anticipated releases and surpass high expectations. Their songs are more like scenes of a movie where characters, or in this case, guest vocalists, show up and disappear. “Ibi Dream of Pavement” begins as a gentle strummer, echoing Dinosaur Jr’s flannel nation, over a hurricane of guitars and horns as Drew urgently screams “don’t get high on what you create,” while the Stars’ Amy Milan adds understated whispers. The elegant pop of live favorite “7/4 Shoreline” and “Swimmers” with Emily Haines swooning “If you always get up late/you never gonna be on time,” showcasing their pop smarts. The frantic beat of “Windsurfing Nation” makes like a mad chase scene, with a static rush of layered vocals asking “I’m wasting away /am I wasting away” before declaring “we won’t be /what you want us to be” (which may be the bands way of saying “take the piss” to the industry). There’s also a sexy Prince romp, “Hotel,” a lush burner laced with horns, which borrows a rift from Feist’s “One Evening.” With the pressure to follow the success of fellow countrymen, friends and lovers, Feist, Metric, Stars, Arcade Fire, and Death From Above 1979, they have all but ignored the need to make a record for the label folks, defining themselves even more. It’s a record by artists for artists, a statement record that serves as the year’s most perfect indie rock opus. The album’s reckless abandon, warm cascading guitars, galloping grooves, string arrangements, horns, and intricate production by Dave Neufield, who allows every idea someone came up with to somehow co-exist as a whole in a way that it all makes sense, the joyful noise and sunshine filled spirit will have indie nation clapping their hands and saying yeah. |
|
