Project Description

ALVVAYS

“ANTISOCIALITES”

(Album Review)

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Canadian ‘jangle pop’ four-piece Alvvays are back this year with a new release, Antisocialites, due out September 8, and to say it’s a fabulous follow-up to their 2014 self-titled debut would be an understatement. I first stumbled across Alvvays on Youtube when the video for their single, the catchy, dream pop influenced Archie, Marry Me, I was an instant fan. Their first release generally kept to a dream pop/jangle pop style, with occasional hints of more traditional rock inspired guitar. Antisocialites, while somewhat keeping to this method, sees much more experimentation from the band, as more garage-style guitar is used than on the first album, as well as seeing vocalist and guitarist Molly Rankin hitting higher and longer notes flawlessly throughout, adding more to the band’s ethereal sound, particularly on second single Dreams Tonite and the short, punchy Your Type.

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Three singles have been released in the lead up to the release of Antisocialites; In Undertow, Dreams Tonite, and Plimsoll Punks, all three being perfect examples of how Alvvays have evolved and changed as a band. Antisocialites shows Alvvays as not confined to one sound, expanding and adding to the jangle pop formula that drew large amounts of attention and praise, and experimenting with louder and more boisterous progressions and fills, borrowing elements of rock, garage and Scot-pop to create an album that is bereft of ‘filler’ songs, with each track serving up something new and exciting. The first single, In Undertow, shows Rankin’s ability to write a simultaneously charming and beautiful break-up song, tempered with wit and pragmatism, as she breathily sings “You find a wave and try to hold on for as long as you can, you made a mistake you’d like to erase and I understand.” She then, almost longingly posits “Meditate, play solitaire, take up self-defense,” wistfully listing post break-up coping mechanisms.

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Second single Dreams Tonite details the lost-love of a relationship about to end. Written by Rankin and guitarist Alec O’Hanley it shows amazing lyric writing ability, with one of the most expressive and devastating bridges this year; “Don’t sit by the phone for me, wait at home for me, all alone for me, your face was supposed to be hanging over me like a rosary, so morose for me; seeing ghosts of me; writing oaths to me, is it so naive to wonder,” before launching into the chorus; “If I saw you on the street, would I have you in my dreams tonight, tonight?” Plimsoll Punks, the third single off the album, is a poppy, catchy anthem, with cheeky guitaring and a light, sharp beat. Now, if you’re like me and had no idea what a plimsoll is, it is a canvas shoe with a rubber sole (like Vans or Converse).  The song is perhaps the most diverse on the record. Changing from fuzzy dream pop guitar, a soft yet sharp beat, to a singalong chorus, to an almost punk inspired third verse, fuzzy guitar solo and sudden change to Karfisa synthpop, to an explosive guitar piece and the chorus again. Plimsoll Punks shows all everything that went into Antisocialites, drawing from a sea of influences and creativity as touches of bands like Camera Obscura, The Smiths, Best Coast and The Cranberries present throughout what should be considered a holistic indie pop album. By that I mean that the album experiments very successfully with new sounds, styles and approaches while retaining the familiar dream pop sound cultivated by the band’s first album, and touches on almost every aspect of the indie genre at some point throughout the 33 minute release.

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While the aforementioned songs are beautiful and entrancing in their own right, the standout track on the album is Lollipop (Ode to Jim). The titular ‘Jim’ of this song is none other than Jim Reid, singer of the Scottish shoegaze/post-punk veterans The Jesus and Mary Chain, hinting again at their major influences. The opening drumbeat and  feedback and subsequent searing guitar is reminiscent of Fill in the Blank by indie powerhouse Car Seat Headrest, before launching into one of the most ‘Alvvays’ songs as you could hear. A fun, tongue-in-cheek song about a surreal date involving LSD, the song has a sublimely catchy chorus, along with feel-good guitar work and intelligent wordplay, equating the person she was on the date with to an annoyance, “You’re a lollipop in my hair.”

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In support of the release of Antisocialites, Alvvays have announced autumn tour dates in Europe and the North America. This writer is hoping for an Australian tour announcement.

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VERDICT

With Antisocialites, Alvvays have crafted a timeless piece of indie pop, fusing genre and sound into an album that appeals to the pop sensibilities in everyone. It shows a band that knows how to construct an album, a true album, with no weak tracks and a unique touch to each son

g. The highly intelligent and playful lyrics, experimental instrumentation and overall dream pop qualities make it an absolute must listen and an album I cannot recommend highly enough.

5 Stars

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