Simply put: Canadians do it better. Well, in the very least, they do weirder better. Sunset Rubdown are a four-piece from Montreal that creates off-kilter, whimsical guitar rock whose beautifully subtle melodies slowly creep under your skin deeper and deeper the more you listen. Songwriter and vocalist Spencer Krug (also from Wolf Parade, Frog Eyes, Swan Lake) yelps out cryptic metaphors from behind his keyboard in such a way that often forces a "love it" or "can't stand it" division among listeners, but I find myself being captivated both by the uniqueness of the singing style and his adept sense of rhythm with words, placing them just at the right peak or valley of a song to complement the emotional weight of it.
There is also a creepy, horror-movie-soundtrack like quality to the piano arrangements on some songs ("Colt Stands Up, Grows Horns", "Stallion") that I find even myself wishing would end sooner. Yet, these missteps are always juxtaposed to some brilliant bridge or transition that I can't overlook. The best songs start and end in completely different worlds as mini-epics, first coming off as mad meanderings, then revealing themselves as scripted compositions with every note in its right place ("The Mending of the Gown", "Magic vs. Midas", "Up on Your Leopard, Upon the End of Your Feral Days", "The Taming of the Hands that Came Back to Life"). Judging by their song titles, I think it is safe to say that Sunset Rubdown also have a playful sense of humor.
Random Spirit Lover is actually a very apt label for this record. It is often random, has a ton of spirit, and I would bet these guys are lovers, not fighters. In any case, they are keeping the album alive and well for me.
Home page: sunsetrubdown.net
Listen: Winged/Wicked Things [MP3]
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