By Stan Cierlitsky
Wolf Parade return January 24th with Thin Mind on Sub Pop. This is their fifth album since the band started out in 2003. Given they have only released 5 albums in 17 years and you might think that this band isn't prolific. Well, the band might not be too prolific, but the members certainly are: Dan Boeckner (vocalist and guitarist) has released excellent albums as Handsome Furs and Operators (including the band's 2019 album reviewed here), while Spencer Krug (vocalist and keyboards) has released excellent albums as Sunset Rubdown, Moonface, Frog Eyes, and others. And if you like Wolf Parade you definitely need to check out these other efforts.
"'Thin Mind' refers to the way that being around too much tech has made our focus thin," says Krug. "It's opening one more page, scrolling one more thing," adds Boeckner, "and the weird, sort-of hollow automaton feeling that you get from it."
The album opens with "Under Glass" This is a straightforward rocker featuring Boeckner on vocals. Gotta love the Big Country-sounding guitar. Not quite bagpipes but you will know what I mean. "Nobody knows what they want anymore," go the lyrics. I know what I want and it's more songs exactly like this. This isn't one of the three teaser tracks, but it is one of the strongest tracks on the album.
The next track is a Krug one, "Julia Take Your Man Home", and it's a very Eighties synth-pop kind of song. Longtime fans probably realize that Boeckner usually sings the more straightforward songs, while Krug usually sings more of the wandering songs. This is actually more of a straightforward offering, and one they have been playing live for a bit. You might also realize that this isn't the first time Krug has sung about the fictitious character Julia (see his other offerings).
"Forest Green" was the second track released late last year. This is one of my favorites off the record. Another straightforward Boeckner rocker with a heavy dose of those Eighties-style synths which are all over Thin Mind. The next couple of tracks let up a bit, and are a bit more exploratory. Again, looking to those themes of too much tech and its effects, the lyrics are insightful. "I don't want to live in a static age, staying in a place where nothing changes, we can begin again," Boeckner sings on "The Static Age".
The ninth track, "Against The Day", was actually the first single released from the album. And it's a song where Boeckner and Krug share vocal duties (and I love when that happens). This is instantly a classic Wolf Parade song. Very heavy synth hooks here, and if you're old like me, you will be racking your brain trying to figure out what each riff reminds you of, even as its video references the "Bastards of Young" video by The Replacements. The last track, "Town Square", is another of my favorites, and my favorite Krug track on the album. "All we are is reaching for the light," go the lyrics.
Thin Mind is out on Friday via Sub Pop.
More details on Wolf Parade via the band's official Facebook page. Don't forget to check out Wolf Parade at the 9:30 Club on February 22.
[Photo: Pamela Evelyn & Joseph Yarmush]