Handsome Furs

Here's a review I wrote about their album for my school alternative weekly paper. I don't know how they are live, but if the price is right I would check 'em out.

When indie scene-stealers Wolf Parade take the stage, the dual lead vocalists capture the attention of anyone in attendance. So what happens when you take one of those dynamic musicians and pair him with his wife? You get the Handsome Furs. Wolf Parade guitarist Dan Boeckner and wife Alexei Perry’s latest album, Face Control, showcases Boeckner’s unique voice and underscores it with a theme of eighties Soviet Russia.

The Canadian two-piece is able to craft sonically interesting songs while showcasing Boeckner’s guitar playing and vocals. However Boeckner’s voice is as much of an instrument as his guitar or Perry’s bare bones synths. The opening track “Legal Tender” owes more to New Order, when they were fresh out of the shadow of Joy Division, than modern trendsetters Franz Ferdinand and Arcade Fire. Perry’s synths practically scream bright city lights, while Boeckner yells out “It was nothing/ it was nothing to me.” The line may make no sense, but it sounds cool, which pretty much sums up this band and this album.

The albums nocturnal feel is back in the third track, “Talking Hotel Arbat Blues.” Boeckner’s guitar sounds like a nursery rhyme gone bad, layered with delayed distortion, while he beckons “I don’t know what I’ve been told.” Perry seems to be forgotten, however she holds him in check throughout the song, making him take a step back from the cliff that he always seems to be teetering on throughout the album. Face Control culminates in the track “All We Want, Baby, Is Everything.” The dream like riff that runs through the chorus is the perfect soundtrack for your sleepless weekend, while the usually straining Boeckner lets loose a relaxed “All we want, baby is everything,” as if that isn’t too much to ask.

On the second half of the album, the paranoia and communist romanticism come into play. With song titles like “Nyet Spasiba” and “Radio Kaliningrad” it’s hard not to thing of some sort of real life Boris and Natasha playing guitar and synthesizers for the hipster crowd. “Radio Kaliningrad” is the embodiment of this. Starting with nothing but sonic fuzz and echoing guitar, it eventually builds into a full-blown soviet dance party. Boeckner’s projects have always reflected lack of sleep and the paranoia the frenzied state of mind when you’ve been up for too long, and this is an extension of that.

Handsome Furs “Face Control” is a solid album that shouldn’t be thrown in the scrap heap that side projects so often find themselves in. It’s interesting to hear Boeckner outside of Wolf Parade even though sometimes you can’t tell the difference. But there are moments throughout where the simplicity helps bring out aspects of his voice that got lost in the fold occasionally with Wolf Parade. Also his wife is hot so they’re probably more fun to watch live, so keep that in mind.

although its kind of cheap, i really shouldn't spend the money tonight, but i'll probably end up going

yeah i don't have sound on my computer so it really sucks, i have no idea whats wrong, but my computer crashed a couple months back and when the dell guy restored it, i'm not sure what he did, the sound worked before my computer crashed

probably just need to dl the card, or a patch or something.

Dells are the worst.