Friday 02 July 2010



Drowned in sound

I’ve always had a bit of trouble with the saying “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts” even though I understand the intent and meaning behind it.  In considering Expo 86, the new record from Wolf Parade, I’m not sure the saying fits perfectly, but it comes close.  Spencer Krug and Dan Boeckner are great songwriters and musicians in their own right, proving it time and again with Sunset Rubdown and Handsome Furs (Krug’s and Boeckner’s other bands, respectively), but there’s a certain kind of musical alchemy that happens when they’re working together in Wolf Parade that’s lacking in their other bands.  Drummer Arlen Thompson and multi-instrumentalist Dante DeCarlo are that missing key ingredient, I think, offering the rhythmic balance the band needs to keep everything in sync.  They are very much a part of Wolf Parade, and their absence would be be sorely missed.

The four all come together in a glorious symphony of sound on Expo 86, an album that moves them light-years on from their last record, 2008′s At Mount Zoomer. Album opener “Cloud Shadow on the Mountain” kicks the doors wide open, rushing in to fill the void with thundering drums and bass, pulsing synths, and shredding guitar work.  Everything is pushed to its limits, sounding as if it’s about to tumble into a mess of feedback and distortion.  “Little Golden Age”, “What Did My Lover Say? (It Always Had to Go This Way)” rank as some of their best songs ever, while the album as a whole (here it comes) coalesces into their finest collection yet.  Together or alone, Boeckner and Krug haven’t written and recorded a finer set of songs.

J.D. Considine noted in The Globe & Mail this week that lyrically, Expo 86 doesn’t seem to be about very much at all, but not that it matters: “Instead, it’s about sound, about the way Wolf Parade mixes guitars and synths, riffs and rhythms.”  I couldn’t agree more.  You’re not going to gain anything by reading the lyric sheet while listening.  Krug spoke to Pitchfork a while back and said that when considering songs for the record, he questioned whether he would dance to the songs or not.  Dance if it suits you, but I prefer just immersing myself in the record.  I’d suggest putting on your best swim suit, grab a pair of goggles and just let yourself drown in the sound of Wolf Parade.

MP3: Wolf Parade “What Did My Lover Say? (It Always Had to Go This Way)”
MP3: Wolf Parade “Ghost Pressure”
Myspace: Wolf Parade





by J. Di Gioia | Comments Off

This entry was posted on Friday, July 2nd, 2010 at 8:45 am and is filed under MP3, QBiM SPiNS. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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