Japandroids No Singles (Polyvinyl)
4/5
By: Jen Long
‘This is NOT their sophomore album’ states a giant sticker on the inside cover of Japandroid’s No Singles. It’s a warning to lazy hacks like myself not to write some kind of bullshit review here that reads ‘The follow up to 2009’s Post-Nothing leaves behind the studio polish and resorts to more lo-fi production’ or something. And it would be bullshit, because even though this material pre-dates their debut full length, it is by no means an inferior beast.
Japandroids are Vancouver duo Brian and David. They formed in 2006 and self- released two EPs: All Lies in 2007 and Lullaby Death Jams in 2008. Both were limited edition. No Singles is a reissue of both EPs as one neat package.
Personally, I love listening to records like this. It feels like you can follow a band’s progression through the course of the album. You can trace right back to their roots through the fuzz and grind of a lower production budget. And it’s a format that lends itself to the DIY garage punk of bands like Japandroids, Fucked Up or Les Savy Fav. It’s real proof of a band’s worth when you listen to their earliest releases and the songs still resonate harder than ninety per cent of their contemporaries’ current work.
Opening with ‘Darkness On The Edge Of Gastown’, it’s a gut kick of sharp cymbals, guttural screams, and snarled guitar. But in its chorus comes a cloak of familiarity that reassures this is the same band that sings ‘Wet Hair’. Bury deeper into the record though, and you’ll find some surprisingly raw punk anthems - ‘Lovers/Strangers’ churns like a DFA1979 demo and ‘Couture Suicide’ has the tongue in cheek military stomp of a less devilish Mclusky.
It’s no secret that Japandroids take a large influence from the Welsh champions of quick wit and distorted dreams. The penultimate track on No Singles is a cover of their epic ‘To Hell With Good Intentions’ that cuts into a full on drive of strained screams and thrashed thrill that might even lighten the lips of Andy Falkous. In fact, it’s a bit of a show stealer. I’m not sure whether that’s a comment on the efforts of Brian and Dave though, or just the fact that Mclusky were f**king awesome.
However you want to take this album, as a collection of ten incredible tracks or as a ripped up retrospective, it’s a fantastic record to own and only leaves one question - when can I have their sophomore LP, please?
Artists in this article: Japandroids
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