Peter Bjorn and John
"Writer's Block"
(Wichita/V2)
Sounds like: A good old PB&J.
Grade: A-
The peanut butter and jelly sandwich is renowned as humble yet incredibly satisfying; therefore, it's quite comparable to "Writer's Block," by Sweden's Peter Bjorn and John. From the guitar-snare triplets and whistling that begin the album to every quirk throughout, PB&J are confident without being arrogant and act like nothing more than the world's most self-contented independent pop band.
It's independent pop because PB&J really don't fit into the same category as most of their contemporaries. Bands like Belle and Sebastian and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah could easily share the stage with PB&J, but while "Writer's Block" is both upbeat and happy, it never reaches the kind of sickening sweetness that turns off many listeners to indie pop. Instead, both the lyrics and the musical tone reflect a kind of introspective comfort that is both infectious and fresh, while maintaining a pop intuition that results in some unexpected twists and turns.
Not only do PB&J prove simple and interesting, they do so utilizing a variety of musical means. For example, the album's first single, "Young Folks," features primarily drum and bass, while "The Chills" utilizes unorthodox vocal percussion, and "Roll the Credits" uses an acoustic guitar style that draws equal influence from mariachi and My Bloody Valentine.
The fact PB&J can use all these sounds and still come out with a record that feels like its own entity rather than a jumbled mosaic gives them perfect justification to sing and play like they own the indie music scene; however, their lack of aloofness is precisely what makes this album work so well. This band is self actualized and happy with the music they're making. Bj?rn Yttling sums it up perfectly when he sings, "I laugh more often now. I cry more often now. I am more me."
-CAMERON CONWAY
Tokyo Police Club
"A Lesson in Crime"
(Paper Bag)
Sounds like: Reassurance that Canada knows what it's doing.
Grade: B+
On the EP's first track, lead singer David Monks greets the listener with frantic shouts: "Operator, get the president of the world-this is an emergency!" This sort of fierce entrance is the only way to start "A Lesson in Crime," a refreshing breath of post-punk garage rock. Even though the album stands at a fleeting 16 minutes, Tokyo Police Club makes some truly poignant, much-needed ripples in the increasingly monotonous pond of indie music.
"A Lesson in Crime" was originally released in the fall of 2006, yet Tokyo Police Club has been riding a wave of buzz ever since. Rolling Stone even knighted the aforementioned track "Cheer I On" as the 47th best song of the year, with reason.
The band members met at a young age in a gifted program of a suburban Toronto elementary school where they bonded over "Star Wars" and playing Blink 182 covers. Both of these passions are still evident on "A Lesson in Crime," particularly the science fiction/fantasy elements. There is often a distinctly cosmic vibe, especially on "Shoulders and Arms," where the guitar work sounds otherworldly, and the ghostly "La Ferrassie," which sounds like a fusion of Tokyo Police Club's Canadian contemporaries Broken Social Scene and The Arcade Fire.
-DONNY T. SHELDON
Bloc Party
"A Weekend in the City"
(Vice)
Sounds Like: Tim Allen's career, 2000-2007.
Grade: C+
Most bands with debut albums blown out of proportion by hype see their second effort as being the pin that could possibly pop their entire career. Not Bloc Party, however. It's obvious the band saw their second album not as an opportunity to fail miserably, but as an opportunity to create our generation's "Sgt. Pepper."
This concept album begins with the notion that Bloc Party plans to take over the world, as if dominating the British indie rock scene with 2005's "Silent Alarm" wasn't enough. For the first half of the album, the band almost has the listener convinced that the musical content is as earth-shattering as they seem to think it is. After some initial greatness, however, things go downhill rapidly, as overused vocal hooks trip up some potentially grade-A songs and confirm the mediocrity of others.
While the first half of the album contains songs that are substantially darker than the band's previous work, the latter tracks on the album are sappy love songs that suffer greatly from a significant lack of ideas. They are cohesive to a fault, ending up sounding all too similar. This overly soft aesthetic also makes the second half sound awkwardly out of sync with the first.
If the first half of this album were presented as an EP, it would be a stellar example of what Bloc Party is capable of. As it is, however, it is a disappointing example of how excessive ambition and a lack of concept coordination can have messy results.
-C.C.
