
Alvvays
Antisocialites
Polyvinyl Record Co. · September 8th, 2017
That detail might be where they somewhat lost me on this one – I’m not gonna knock the prowess that the band clearly possesses, but there is a slight lack of character to Antisocialites. I have a fantastic time while the album plays – there really isn’t another band creating such a cohesive and genre-incorporating sound – but it misses the mark in any storytelling fashion. Rankin’s vocals are absolutely wonderful and situationally perfect, and there is no contesting her creativity with them. Take a long sit down with ‘Lollipop’ for some really cool vocal effects that sell the entire song. That said, I’m not quite sold on her as a narrator. The album’s a pretty easy sing-along, but if anything, you get more from the rhythmic choices made with her wordplay than the words themselves – with ‘Hey’ providing a pretty intense dose of that.
I’m sold on Alvvays’ talent and ability to craft music – that was never really called into question – but was still left wanting more post-Antisocialites. Perhaps their live show will zap energy into an outfit that clearly has it in spades, but you lose a bit of on this album.
Listen to Antisocialites here: