Monday 30 August 2010



Polaris ’10 Shortlist: The Sadies Darker Circles

- OR - My descent into the Darker Circles of The Sadies' songbook

The Sadies‘ ninth album, Darker Circles, was greeted with open arms by their adoring fan base, acclaimed as the best recorded representation of their legendary live performances.  Having never seen The Sadies play live myself, I’ll just have to take that on good authority, along with the wide-spread assessment that Darker Circles is the most accomplished record in their canon, since it’s the first Sadies record I’ve ever spent any significant amount of time listening to.  They are the veteran rockers of this year’s Polaris Shortlist (even though Tegan and Sara’s career as a band is slightly longer) and their nomination has elicited all sorts of positive responses.  Being a Sadies newbie, I already feel ill-prepared to evaluate Darker Circles chances at winning Polaris, everyone will have an entry point with any record or artist, so here’s where I start my adventure into the darker circles of The Sadies.

I stepped into the first circle of The Sadies last year when they released Country Club with John Doe.  Again, that record was another critically lauded collection that didn’t really do anything for me, and after a couple of listens I filed it away in my music library.  I didn’t dislike it, or have any real negative feelings towards it–it just was what it was, and I was happy to leave it at that.  Prior to Country Club, I was just lingering on the outskirts.  I knew them as collaborators with Neko Case, Greg Keelor, and a band in their own right, but that was as far as I got.

My experience at the second circle of The Sadies was much the same as the first:  Darker Circles arrived in my mailbox, I listened, digested, and filed it away again with no real reaction, positive or negative.

I stepped into the third circle when the album ended up on the shortlist.  It was the first record of the 10 I pulled out to listen to because I obviously had missed something that my fellow judges didn’t.  This time my reaction wasn’t quite so neutral.  I would love to say that I immediately saw the error of my ways and declared Darker Circles a triumph, but now that the field had narrowed to 10, I could cite four shortlisters I felt were far superior, and three others that were at least more interesting to listen to. Darker Circles quickly settled to the bottom of the pack.

It hasn’t stayed there, though.  I’m nothing if not an equal opportunist music consumer, so I’m happy to say that the brooding sadness and impending dread of Darker Circles has ended up brightening my days.  Where at first I found the production values tinny and sub-par, I now see an artistic choice in creating tone and atmosphere.  Like the best of this year’s Polaris records, Darker Circles is a complete package, best digested and appreciated as a whole, in my opinion thereby justifying its place on the short list.  Songs like opener “Another Year Again” must sound absolutely riveting live, since the recorded version tends to knock me back on my heels when I hear it in my headphones, as does “Ten More Years”, and “Another Day Again”.  “The Quiet One” is my favourite moment on this record, its slightly ominous tone, and subtle beauty has stolen my heart.  I think seeing them live would convince me that my life needs The Sadies in it, but now that I’ve delved into Darker Circles more deeply, it’s a record I’ll come back to in the future.

I freely admit that I didn’t give Darker Circles areal chance to impress me on first listen.  It’s one of the best records in its genre that I have heard in a while, and I’m sure that, like many have stated, it’s the Sadies best record so far (I haven’t gone and investigated their back catalogue to confirm this myself).  Polaris is not a legacy award, so giving it to The Sadies (or any other artist) based on their career is not in keeping with the prize’s spirit or mandate.  There will be other venues for recognizing lifetime achievement, and I’m certain that, in time, The Sadies will get their due.  Personally, as good as it is, Darker Circles wouldn’t be one of my top 10 records of the year (maybe top 20), but if it weren’t for Polaris, I wouldn’t have gotten as close to it as I have.  I’m looking forward to their performance at the Gala to see their prowess for myself.

MP3: The Sadies “Another Year Again”
Myspace: The Sadies
Facebook: The Sadies
Twitter: The Sadies





by J. Di Gioia | 1 Comment »

This entry was posted on Monday, August 30th, 2010 at 8:35 am and is filed under MP3. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

One Response to “Polaris ’10 Shortlist: The Sadies Darker Circles”

Katie August 30th, 2010 at 12:33 pm

I saw The Sadies live when they opened for Jenny Lewis a year or so ago. Unfortunately, I couldn’t pay attention to the music, because their instruments were turned up SO LOUD. Myself and many, many others stood there just plugging our ears, which is something I’ve never ever done at a show, despite almost always standing by the speakers. I definitely respect them for their contributions to Neko Case’s catalog, but I think they need their own hearing tested.