This punkish indie rock band is moody enough to fall into post-punk on their new album.The vocals are introspective, but too detached to be "goth", though there is a gray sheen over their music that would appeal to fans of Joy Division or the Cure. The vocals take on a throaty aggression midway into the first song. "Nausea" finds the bass line picking the darker elements in play. They are in the same corner of the darkside as bands like Iceage or Lower. The songs are very well written, though lean more toward the punk side of post-punk.
The title track find them bringing in synths . Which are in the background but get them closer to an 80's goth sound. Though I think even with this , the song is not as thoughtful as the first two. That is not to say it's bad, it just falls shy of the bar they have raised for themselves already on this album. The last song is marginally better since it goes into a wider dynamic range with the more moody change of the vocals. My only real complaint is that this is just four song, I would like to hear more in regards to what they are capable of.
I'll give this album a 9. I think it's almost more punk than post-punk, but the lines get real blurred. I would almost contend that using synths is the line in the sand between the two, but Murder City Devils are a good example of where that can't be a hard and fast rule as they certainly break it.If you are steeped in goth then this really won't impress you in terms of where they go mood wise. If you are more into punk , but in the mood for something darker then you will more than likely dig what these guys from Vancouver are doing.
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