Handsome Furs - FaceControl

Thu 5th Mar, 2009 in Music Reviews

Melding the chaotic sounds of Wolf Parade, the beats of Elvis Costello, and the lushness of New Order synth, Montreal husband-and-wife duo Handsome Furs have hit the nail on the head. Face Control is a monster of an album. Their sophomore effort leaves 2007’s Plague Park far, far behind, wallowing in its own pity, which was a lacklustre (and at times, depressing) affair best left untold.

Dan Boeckner, Wolf Parade’s gifted vocalist, guitarist and centrepiece, and his wife, Alexei Perry, have picked up where Apologies to the Queen Mary left off, chucking in a few extra keys here and there that gets many an encouraging nod. It’s the upbeat Boeckner we’ve learnt to expect, even after Wolf Parade’s mediocre At Mount Zoomer.

The unusual name stemmed from a bizarrely narcissistic aspect of club culture they picked up when touring Russia. Club-goers in Moscow would have to pay for table bookings in advance via credit card, yet would not be – œguaranteed’ entry – bouncers reserved the right to permit entry based on your appearance. Hence the term – œFace Control’. The Eastern European theme is sprinkled throughout the album.

Wonderful opener Legal Tender sounds as though it could be Wolf Parade, yet the guitar is mainly rested in favour for hand-claps, bouncy synth, fuzz, and more hand-claps. And it sounds a little like I Want Candy. All the while, Boeckner rasps and rants in his signature effortless style. Standout track Talking Hotel Arbat Blues sexes up military chants with Boeckner adding some very simple (yet very effective) reverb toward the end. All We Want, Baby, Is Everything, is a love story set to metronome, with Perry’s backup vocals adding depth to the choruses, before breaking into an ending Isaac Brock would be proud of.

I’m Confused, although channelling The Escape Club’s Wild Wild West at the beginning, could see some indie dance floors this year, and barely 90-second long (White City) is a steel drum intermission worthy of being extended. Nyet Spasiba (which is “no thanks” in Russian), is a spasmodic foray into New Order territory, (but does Boeckner actually say “I felt it coming, Emphysema”?). On cruisy Officer of Hearts, the bass of the ilk of The Knife is given a muscle relaxant, dubbed over with the lyrics “Our love is lost, And found”, and bongo drums.

The pièce de résistance, however, is closing track Radio Kaliningrad. Emerging from fuzzy electronica is a ferocious, guitar-driven torrent of noise, complete with hand-claps and reverb. This is a blissful ending to what could easily have been the younger, slower sibling of Handsome Furs’ disappointing debut. It took a few years, but we finally have a worthy successor to …Queen Mary. Hail.

Face Control is out 14 March on Sub Pop through Stomp.