Swoon’s best moments are when it gets a little epic, a little sassy, or aggressively heavy. Where “Draining” exemplifies the group’s newfound grand ambition, with its delicate and dark guitars that contrast with bright strings, “It’s Nice To Know You Work Alone” represents SSPU’s sexy side (particularly when bassist Nikki Monninger takes the mic). The betrayal-themed “There’s No Secrets This Year,” fuzzed-up loud rocker “Panic Switch,” and the crunchiest parts of “Substitution” represent the best of its heavy material. Speaking of “Substitution,” one of the many tracks that alternate between the light and the heavy, its lighter parts lead you to believe this could be seen as the peppy sequel to Carnavas track “Three Seed.”
Overall, there are no turn-offs or unlistenable tracks on Swoon, just a few songs that test your patience as you wait for the big, loud and fuzzy payoff. The fearless “Growing Old Is Getting Old,” which sees Aubert singing with a pre-pubescent-sounding tenor, is one such track.
All of the subtle and sonic elements of Carnavas are still present here (courtesy of keyboardist Joe Lester). What there is less of on this album is the shoegaze-like material of its earlier work. It instead has a mix of soft and loud guitars with lots of strings weaving above and below them – at least half of Swoon’s ten tracks contain some level of strings. Still, the music here is quite dramatic and dynamic, just not quite as dark as in the past.
Swoon is not exactly SSPU’s answer to The Verve’s Urban Hymns but the heavy amount of strings on this album makes you wonder what direction SSPU is going in. It’s their own sound for sure (despite the influences you may hear), one which could be categorized as soft-to-loud ‘n’ heavy chamber or dream pop. Whatever you want to call it, Swoon is a fine follow-up to Carnavas and the band itself is still exciting to follow.
Key tracks: “There’s No Secrets This Year,” “Substitution,” “Sort Of,” “Panic Switch,” “It’s Nice To Know You Work Alone.”
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Article comments
1 - Triniman
Nice review. I'm going to see them in Winnipeg. When I heard that they were coming here, I checked out some of their music online, became an instant fan, bought tickets and just bought Swoon and Carnavas. Can't wait for the show.