Wolf Parade, Expo 86 - 8.5

They say that you should not judge a book by it's cover. Obviously these people have never heard of or listened to Wolf Parade. Thus I say you should judge this album by the photo that is their puzzling cover. Why is the kid holding a wooden handgun while his counterparts half painted faces stare menacingly at the camera? Truly mysterious is the word which embodies this album from cover photo to the guitar entwined tunes. With a dash of their usual elegance, Expo 86 is the third full length album by this four man Montreal based band.

From the dazzling first track "Cloud Shadow on the Mountain", with its first verse declaring "I was a dream-catcher hanging in the window of a minivan parked by the waters edge", to the synthy tune "Ghost Pressure" with its nonchalant, to-cool-for-school lyrics, this LP goes above and beyond my expectations of a band named after a woodland creature's procession. Another notable track, and my personal favorite, "Yulia" comes near the end of this compilation. This melodious, light, love song, is an excellent way of winding down the album while still keeping it jam packed with good music until the very last chord.

This album is thoroughly enjoyable, even with its flaws. Sure, not all the tracks are perfect, and the same guitar + synthesizer sound on every track may get a little old but you hardly notice it. For those of you that do appreciate this LP, I urge you to check out Mount Zoomer, the previous, but just as good, album from this Canadian Quartet.

- A.W.

Purchase Album: Amazon, iTunes, Sonic Boom