Stars - In Our Bedroom After The War

Note: In order to combat leaks and piracy, Arts and Crafts decided to release In Our Bedroom After The War as a digital download on July 10th. You can, as I did, purchase the album digitally here. The album will be released on CD and Vinyl formats September 25th, 2007.

Download: Stars - "Window Bird"
Download: Stars - "Take Me To The Riot"
Download: Stars - "The Ghost of Genova Heights"
Download: Stars - "In Our Bedroom After The War"

Stars
In Our Bedroom After The War (Arts and Crafts, 2007)
Grade: A-

If there is a single sound that could personify all of the complicated emotions surrounding breaking up, then reconciling, it's the intertwining harmonies of Stars's Amy Millan and Torquil Campbell. On 2005's Set Yourself On Fire, the singers made the most out of the fact that they possess similar timbres - both voices recall a lover's bedside whisper. The result was an album of startlingly intimacy and, backed by winsome, Smiths-influenced indie-pop, an album that served as Stars's commercial (from an indie perspective, at least) and artistic breakthrough.

The follow-up, In Our Bedroom After The War, mines the same emotional territory as Set Yourself On Fire, but does so from a little more tranquil perspective. After a short instrumental that sounds like it came from the soundtrack of your favorite anime, the first song proper is "The Night Starts Here," which starts out with Millan's soft, cooing vocals and a ethereal keyboard, then segues into a steady drumbeat, a pulsing bass line, and subtle guitar accompaniment. That song, along with "Take Me To The Riot," serve as In Our Bedroom After The War beginning one-two punch. "Riot" is one of the record's highest peaks and has an absolutely irresistible chorus.

That song, along with "The Night Starts Here," "Midnight Coward" and "My Favorite Book," make up a series of remarkably consistent group of stellar songs. There are string and percussion flourishes on "My Favorite Book" that show a surprising 70s influences in the band's music (the Prince worthy falsetto that Campbell busts out in "The Ghost of Genova Heights" is also a pleasant surprise). Those stylistic changes are mainly what separate In Our Bedroom After The War from Set Yourself On Fire. Also worth noting are the increased vocal presence of Millan, the greater amount of songs driven by keyboards, and the larger amount of midtempo songs. Not that Set Yourself On Fire was Master of Puppets, or anything like that, but gone are the uptempo songs like "Soft Revolution" or "Set Yourself on Fire."

One change that doesn't work quite so well are the addition of all-out ballads. "Personal" is creative from a lyrical standpoint, but slows the momentum of the album and "Barricade" is one string line from becoming a cheeseball prom anthem. But these missteps are slight, as the album picks up with "Window Bird," with its nifty time changes.

If there's anything Stars know how to do extremely well, it's giving the listener a terrific album closer, and the title track of War is phenomenal. It builds slowly, but steadily, and by the time the song is done, it's all but impossible to feel a wave of wistful transcendence. Fire had that feeling as well, and it's incredibly remarkable that Stars have created another record which sustains that mood through 55 minutes of glorious indie-pop.

(Jonathan Graef)

New Stars Track

Yes, I release that I am behind with this one (it was released on Friday, and I was in San Francisco on a short vacation). But seeing as Set Yourself on Fire was one of my favorite releases of 2005, I was madly anticipating this track. And so here it is, along with three other Stars tracks from previous releases. As for their next album, In Our Bedroom After The War will be released
September 25th, 2007 on Arts and Crafts.


Download: Stars - "The Night Starts Here" (New)
Download: Stars - "Your Ex-Lover Is Dead" from Set Yourself on Fire
Download: Stars - "Ageless Beauty" Set Yourself on Fire
Download: Stars - "Elevator Love Letter" from Heart

(Jonathan Graef)

New Kevin Drew (Broken Social Scene) MP3

Download: Kevin Drew - "tbtf"

I realize that I am a day late and a dollar short on this one, but I figure it would be worth posting anyway. The jam above is from Broken Social Scene-ster Kevin Drew's forthcoming solo album entitled Spirit If..., which will be released Sept. 18th. on Arts and Crafts. If this track is any indication, Drew's solo album (first in a series of albums presented by Broken Social Scene) should continue the mellow, atmospheric, psychedelia that he brings to BSS.

(Jonathan Graef)

Feist - The Reminder

Download: Feist- "I Feel It All"
Download: Feist- "Sea Lion Woman"

Feist
The Reminder (Cherrytree/Interscope, 2007)
Grade: A

Earlier this week, our fearless leader Ian wrote the following about Charlotte Gainsbourg:

"(She) possesses a softness and gentle grace that I cannot even begin to understand. I find myself repeatedly fascinated by these magical women who make a form of music all their own."

I haven't heard note one of Ms. Gainsbourg's new album (but I very much want to, as I am a fan of hers because of The Science of Sleep). With that said, though, I would be willing to bet that if you took Ian's statement and multiplied it by a thousand, you would only vaguely approach my feelings about Feist's new record, The Reminder. It's the best thing I've heard all year, save for The Arcade Fire and of Montreal.

Where to begin the discussion? First off, The Reminder is a huge, huge leap forward from her previous effort, Let It Die. That record itself had numerous highlights, but it doesn't approach the sheer joy of listening to this record. The leap forward comes in the form of Ms. Leslie Feist writing all but one of the songs on the new record - and the song she didn't write, the traditional "See-line Woman" (here as "Sea Lion Woman" - did you see what she did there?) is arranged so that it becomes a uniquely Feistian pop jam.

Some of the more upbeat songs on The Reminder are like an reinterpretation of The Cure's early catalog as cabaret music - "My Moon My Man" and "I Feel It All," in particular, are strong examples of that musical styling.

What makes this record great is that Feist manages to incorporate so many different styles and none of it seems gratuitous for even a second. Every musical aspect of this record - whether its the wistful guitars and keyboards of essential 80s New Wave, the smoky sensuality of jazz, the devestatingly quiet heartbreak of folk - is essential. There is not a single note here that is superfluous, or misplaced, or otherwise wasted.

I'm not sure how much longer I can go on without sounding like an idiot gushing praise like a hyperbole geyser (on second thought, it's probably way too late). So I will just mention the fact that the album is streaming in full on her MySpace Page, and that you can also buy it through InSound.

It will be time and money well spent to hear 50 glorious minutes of an artist showcasing her perfected musical self.

(Jonathan Graef)