Skip to main content

IN REVIEW: Wolf Parade - "Thin Mind"


For their fifth album, Wolf Parade are a trio once again, and paring back the personnel immediately lends a somewhat sparser sound to the proceedings in comparison to their more recent output. This has inevitably resulted in some "throwback" talk, some of which is warranted.

To be sure, there are moments on Thin Mind that will remind listeners of what made Wolf Parade one of Canada's most overlooked indie bands during the big Arcade Fire blow-up that occurred around the time Wolf Parade released their excellent debut Apologies to the Queen Mary. Early single Julia Take Your Man Home sparkles with a similar excitement to that first record, albeit with a more shimmering, synth-propelled flair. Lead track Under Glass, meanwhile, is a more out-and-out rock song, and a strong start to the album with its sticky "nobody knows what they want anymore" chorus.

As the album progresses, synth begins to play a more important role, such as on the lead melody of Forest Green or the accompanying notes that colour the chorus of The Static Age and most of the back half of As Kind As You Can, which devolves into something approximating The Killers. It comes to a head on Against the Day, which goes all in on the '80s sci-fi shtick and winds up being the album's most noticeable song for all the wrong reasons.

Otherwise, when the synths are less grating and/or used in maximum service to the song, there are some fine songs on Thin Mind; Out of Control is sort of a classic Bowie via Interpol trip, Wandering Son is a slightly off-kilter power-pop gem, and closing track Town Square brings it home in slightly askew, psych-pop style.

Even if the rollicking start of Thin Mind doesn't translate into a consistently thrilling record, I will admit it remains interesting through its back half, as the songs get more and more reliant on keys to tell the story and the experiments become somewhat less successful. Overall, it does a better job of re-establishing them as a top notch indie band compared to 2017's lukewarm and scattershot comeback bid Cry Cry Cry, as it plays as a more focused record with some musical and narrative continuity. It's not as strong as their first three albums, but it's certainly worth your time if you enjoyed them, as long as you're okay with not getting another Shine a Light or Call It a Ritual.

January 24, 2020 • Sub Pop
Highlights Under Glass • Julia Take Your Man Home • Out of Control

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Year in Rock 2025

  Alright, I've got some explaining to do.   By now anyone who's visited this blog is well aware of how infrequently I've used this space in recent years; aside from the occasional fertile year of content, I really haven't posted all that often over the last five years or so. There are many reasons for this, which have already been outlined in previous apology posts; but, essentially, it boils down to my own laziness and the cold reality that blogs are, like Refused (again), fucking dead. So, I wouldn't hold my breath for a triumphant return to reviews, or even semi-regular posts, but:   a) I feel like Year in Rock posts have always belonged here and, even though I've experimented with different methods of presentation recently and been satisfied, the "blink and you missed it" unveiling via Facebook stories this year was perhaps ultimately a disservice to the records I lauded. After all, cramming the list into short videos isn't too far off from ju...
Post a Comment
Read more

Year in Rock 2011 Nominee: Sam Roberts Band

SAM ROBERTS BAND I Feel You From: Collider Released: May 10 Having already endured the breakout success ( Brother Down was Canada's it rock song of 2002), the tentative dabbling in the U.S. market, as is the rite of passage for all moderately successful Canuck artists (2003's debut We Were Born in a Flame was the best time to try; one of the best albums of the year, it made a small dent in the American mindset upon its release there a year later), the difficult, druggy third album (the aptly named 2005 disc Chemical City ), and the subdued creative step backward (2008's Love at the End of the World , aside from hit single Them Kids , was really kinda bland), it seems according to script that Sam Roberts would start settling in on his fourth album (and first with the band credited as equal contributors), Collider (you know, I think it was a bad idea to give me brackets). Well, as far as settling in goes, Roberts does and doesn't on Collider .  W...
Post a Comment
Read more

IN REVIEW: Rancid - "Trouble Maker"

As far as punk rock goes, it's hard to name a hotter hot streak than the trio of records Rancid cranked out between 1995 and 2000; the star making ...And Out Come the Wolves , the far-reaching Life Won't Wait and their balls-to-the-wall second self-titled album solidly positioned Rancid as leaders of the second generation of punk. It also preceded a period of slow progression, as Rancid would take eleven years to release their next three records. By the time ...Honor Is All We Know came in 2014, many fans (myself included) had to wonder whether or not this was the end of the road. Such concerns are handily dealt with on the closing track of the standard edition of their ninth record, the positively punishing This Is Not the End . Well, okay then, that's sorted. Now, what of this new record? What do we make of the use of their original logo on the cover, a logo that hasn't graced a Rancid record in 25 years? Is this a throwback to the band's heyday, a new begin...
Post a Comment
Read more