Buy this CD from:
Insound

Rating:

Any mention of Islands or their debut album, Return to the Sea, is sure to be accompanied by talk of the album players’ previous work. But is this context not the initial draw of the group? The Unicorns, multi-instrumentalist Nick Diamonds and drummer J’aime Tambeur’s former band, released one of the most exuberant, delightfully fractured pop albums in recent memory. Combine that with the fact that there are members of Arcade Fire, Wolf Parade, and Bell Orchestre playing on the album, and you have a release with an exceptionally promising repute. While the impressive pedigree may be the first thing that grabs most listeners, it’s the albums shimmering collection of sophisticated pop songs that will keep them returning.

Inspired in some part by Paul Simon’s Graceland, Return to the Sea similarly combines rock and world music (specifically African and Caribbean), but also incorporates elements of hip-hop, indie rock, and country to create a brightly twinkling pop swirl. It is a dense album loaded with all sorts of brightly colored instruments that use great pop hooks and melodies to shine through the robust sound.

The most notable difference between this album and The Unicorns’ Who Will Cut Our Hair When We’re Gone? are the arrangements and structure. Where The Unicorns were loose and fractured, jumping genres with little warning, Islands are linear, tight and organic. Instead of the contrasting instrumentation that gave WWCOHWWG? its’ charming divergence, Return to the Sea works together, with each part adding and blending to make the sum greater than the parts. The vocals are also delivered with much more conviction this time around. The enlarged sense of atmosphere is an interesting and welcome change. Sunshine-y music and nature-related lyrics build location, creating a titular sound through subject matter and instrumental suggestion, instead of the almost-a-narrative structure of WWCOHWWG?.

“Swans,” the album’s lengthy opener, is swelling epic rock, shuffling towards an explosive climax while Diamonds details island life in a simple but expressive lyrical style, followed by the misanthropic “Humans” which marches to a militant drum roll and plucked strings until it reaches a swooning chorus brimming with horns and strings. After these harder-edged tracks, the album goes into full on sun pop mode with “Don’t Call Me Whitney, Bobby,” and the best track on the album, “Rough Gem.” The song is pure pop bliss, with an extremely infectious hook bolstered by a well-layered arrangement.

The album's weakness is that it’s pacing can be a bit jarring, particularly the transitions surrounding “Where There’s a Will There’s a Whalebone,” the hip-hop tinged track featuring excellent verses from guest rappers Busdriver and Subtitle. The track is propulsive on its own, but that forward energy is squandered by the discs’ sequencing. Furthermore, the momentum is picked up again by the excellent “Jogging Summer Gorgeous” and the apocalyptic “Volcanoes,” is killed by ordering them in front of the three low-key, downbeat tracks (“If,” “Ones,” untitled bonus track “Bucky Little Wing,”) While this doesn’t really have any effect on the quality of the songs, it is something to note. I must also add, as someone who has seen the band live, the album comes up short in capturing the bands true brilliance, dulling some of the sounds for the sake of a more even sounding mix. The studio stifling isn’t apparent without the live context, but the lost potential is visible to those who know how vivid the band can be in person.

Despite these minor vexations, the album is still solid all the way through. Each track is meticulously constructed and unfolds with repeated listens, unveiling a vibrant dynamic previously unseen in pop music, continuing the Unicorns legacy of taking pop into fresh new places.

Reviewed by: Eliminator Jr

Comments? Discuss this review in the forum