HANDSOME FURS
Plague Park
Sub Pop
· Wolf Parade’s Dan Boekner tries his own paw at a side-project, with interesting, but mediocre results.
With his masterful output under the Sunset Rubdown moniker, hyperkinetic keyboard contributions to Frog Eyes and sophisticated segments of the Swan Lake project, Spencer Krug is often unfairly regarded as the only true genius behind Wolf Parade. However, what many people may forget is that the ass-kicking Canadians also have Dan Boekner in their pack, the whisky-tongued blue-collar songwriter behind such behemoth tracks as "Shine a Light," "Modern World" and "This Heart’s on Fire."
Plague Park and the Handsome Furs are Boekner’s attempts to prove he can stand on his own two feet as well, with girlfriend Alexei Perry propping him up for support. Album opener "What We Had" includes some vaguely industrial-sounding percussion (in the Einsturzende Neubaten sense of the term, not Hanzel Und Gretyl) that is balanced by the warmer tones of Boekner’s voice and some simple guitar strums. This is the consistent arrangement throughout the record – dark and minimal soundscapes that allow Boekner’s words to become the focal point. Because of this, none of the melodies are all that memorable, and picking a clear highlight is difficult.
That said, "Hearts of Iron" is the catchiest song here and the closest cousin to a Wolf Parade counterpart. With a disjointed guitar hook to keep him anchored, Boekner begins by agonizing over a broken heart, but then advocates its ability to heal over time. First single "Handsome Furs Hate This City" is even less hopeful, with Boekner ranting poetically about the problems of a metropolis and then hammering home the mantra of "Ooooh-ooohhh/ life is long and hollow." Anyone who’s pored over the lyrics of Apologies to the Queen Mary will notice a continuation of the themes from "Modern World" and "We Built Another World." Seems Boekner still wants to live in a forest.
"Snakes on the Ladder" and "Cannot, Get Started" include the album’s most interesting uses of the drum machine, while the frenetic backbeat of "Dead + Rural" sounds like it could have been ripped from a Fischerspooner track. "Sing! Captain" is the album’s most anthemic song, following up the big-city repulsion with some ideas for revolt – "With our torches in our hands we will reduce it to the ground."
All in all, the Furs’s efforts are admirable, and while the results are certainly enjoyable, these nine songs still unfortunately come up short of amazing. That’s not to say you should skip out entirely if you’re a fan of Wolf Parade, Boekner or theatrical rock ’n’ roll in general, because the Park is definitely prettier than the city.
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