THE BOOK OF LISTS
The Book of Lists
Scratch Records
· Fresh west coast licks steeped in Brit-rock and new wave sense and sensibility.
Hailing from the drizzly seaside, it’s not surprising that Vancouver’s Book of Lists feels a natural affinity for the musicians of the British Isles. Singer-songwriter Chris Frey, formerly of Destroyer, heads up this British Columbian invasion flanked by fellow bookkeepers – bassist Laura Piasta, guitarist Trevor Lee Larson and drummer Brady Cranfield. Capitalizing on the relative success of their 2005 release Red Arrows (Global Symphonic), The Lists continue to take aim at emulating the best psychedelic pop the world has ever known.
Part radio-friendly chart-topper, part time machine, this self-titled shoegazer encapsulates elements of style makers like The Cure, Modern English, David Bowie and early Rolling Stones within eight slender tracks. At times Frey’s echo-heavy vocals recall those of John Lennon as he played ringmaster on Sgt. Peppers. So much so that it seriously begs the question – are they intentionally being derivative or are they just terribly naïve? And furthermore – what’s with that accent? It’s there and then it’s gone. The brash and snappy energy of songs like "Journey East" and "Moon Balloon" stand in stark contrast to the creepy, flat droning of "The Bathers" or the ambitious "Little Jerk," which offers a thin degree of "Satisfaction." Staking its claim in the well-trodden imperialist wasteland of the ’80s still tends to work to the band’s advantage. It instantly lends the group’s original compositions an air of familiarity, if not credibility.
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