The Toronto band releases the hounds, returning after a four-year recorded absence (since 2006’s Planets Conspire). It’s as though pent-up energy finally gets its release. Darcy Rego (drums) and Michael Small (bass) play with abandon, with Jason Nunes (keys/guitar) riding the wave. So, you get less melodic focus and more forceful, rhythmic playing. Now-departed member Andrew Scott’s trumpet figures prominently on the opener, “Ghosts at My Back,” and then he’s pretty much gone, except for a guitar part on the all-out-attack closing track, “Eagles.” With solid exceptions, “Bones Attack!!” and “Kingfisher,” this album lacks the nuance and breadth of earlier releases. Ex-Haligonian Brian O’Reilly (Their Majesties, The Pinecones) is in the lineup for the upcoming show (November 6, the Seahorse) with The Superfantastics and Ruby Coast.
This article appears in Nov 4-10, 2010.