Categories : Music Reviews, Rock + Pop.
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Rating: 3.5/5 Released: August 21, 2007 Reviewer: Nathan Atnikov |
One of the main concerns entering the New Pornographers fourth LP, Challengers, is that the band may slowly reveal themselves as a one trick pony. Sure, the one trick they do is nothing short of remarkable, but even a remarkable trick can grow stale when repeated over and over. The one-two punch of A.C. Newman’s blissful pop and Dan Bejar’s more complex art-pop made Electric Version and Twin Cinema instant classics, but another installment of the same was set up perfectly to be a bit underwhelming. As usual though, Newman and co. stay well ahead of the curve here.
Where earlier efforts were buoyant with pop energy, Challengers is a more sombre and reflective album. Still, NP don’t exactly sound like the Smiths. Opener ‘My Rights Versus Yours’ starts with Newman singing over a spacey keyboard and barely present acoustic guitar, and takes about a minute and a half before building to full speed. Bejar’s ‘Myriad Harbour,’ is a surprisingly straight-forward track for the Destroyer front-man, and also serves as the introduction for first time lead vocalist Kathryn Calder, usually a touring contributor to the band.
The band only hit the exuberant highs of previous efforts twice, on ‘All Things That Go to Make Heaven and Earth,’ and ‘Mutiny, I Promise You.’ Given the subdued nature of the rest of the record, these songs instantly come across as the most powerful and affecting, whether or not that turns out to be true down the line.
Challengers is by no means a challenging record. Slower and more thoughtful, the album is still chock full of pop gems, even if they require a little more devotion to become attached to. Even though Electric Version and Twin Cinema were deceivingly complex records, Challengers still feels like the “growing up†album for the New Pornographers.
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