The Official New Pornographers Thread

[murlough23]

I think this band deserves their own thread, now that a few folks here have been successful in getting me into the band and I'm finally at a place where I feel comfortable rating their full discography so far. So I'll kick it off with a brief rundown of my feelings about each album; others who have listened to the band and/or its associated solo projects can definitely feel free to chime in with their own thoughts.

Mass Romantic - 2000
The band's early days, and it shows. A. C. Newman's vocals sound young and squeaky and off-key and downright unsure of himself at times, so most of the tracks where he sings lead are a bit painful for me to get through. Neko Case and Dan Bejar fare better, but at this early stage, they feel a bit like sideshows. The band might be accused of throwing too many sonic ideas into a song at once for most of this album, which makes it tough going for me, but at the same time, they exhibit an almost boundless energy that I have to admire even when it's too over the top for my liking. The songwriting is wacky enough to be impenetrable, which I guess is true of all of their albums, but especially prevalent on their early stuff. I give this one a C+.
Highlights: Neko Case's songs are the best ones here, particularly the catchy title track and her killer performance on "Letter From an Occupant".
Lowlights: "The Fake Headlines", "Execution Day", and "Breakin' the Law" end up on my shitlist due to their annoying melodies and undercooked execution.

Electric Version - 2003
This was the hardest New Pornos album for me to digest - it might just be me, but I feel like they set out to give almost every song an irritating and shrill melody on this one. There's a fine line between catchy and obnoxious, and while I'm sure this is a highly subjective matter, I'd file most of these songs in the "obnoxious" category, even if they are well-written and loaded with intriguing little quips. I'm glad I started with new rather than old, because if I'd begun with Mass Romantic and then this one, I'm not sure I'd have stuck around for Twin Cinema. This one gets a C from me at best.
Highlights: "It's Only Divine Right" is a solid rocker that hints at the excellence to come on Twin Cinema. Elsewhere, "All for Swinging You Around", "Miss Teen Wordpower", and "The Laws Have Changed" are fun enough to stand out, and Dan Bejar's chorus of "no no no"s in "Testament to Youth in Verse" is intriguing.
Lowlights: "The End of Medicine" is probably my least favorite song by the band so far. That and "Loose Translation" pack a one-two punch to the gut that make it hard for me to want to finish the album after that.

Twin Cinema - 2005
Their best album by a longshot. Kathryn Calder had joined the band by this point, and her contributions on keyboard and BGVs make a big difference even if she's not front and center just yet. They've smoothed out the "annoying melody" problem for the most part, since the composition is little less goofy and a little more dramatic, there seems to be a better balance between the three lead vocalists, and even though this sucker's long at 14 tracks, nearly all of them stand out and I'm riveted up until the very end. The addition of a few ballads helps a lot - they break up the flow a bit and help to distinguish the up-tempo songs from one another. I'll give this one a B+.
Highlights: "Stacked Crooked" is probably my favorite New Pornos song - it's an oddity tucked away at the very end of their longest album, but it's a hell of a finale. "Use It", "The Bleeding Heart Show" and "Jackie, Dressed in Cobras" are an awesome triple threat right near the beginning; the title track is fun, and I'd probably be guilty of listening too long to "Sing Me Spanish Techno".
Lowlights: "Three or Four" is irritating with its incessant repetition of the same riff and a weak chorus hook. "The Bones of an Idol" is OK, but way too early in the track listing. Beyond that, I can't find anything major to complain about.

Challengers - 2007
This was my first experience with the band, and now I realize what an atypical record it is for them - it seems to be more about texture than massive hooks, which probably befuddled some of their long time fans. Again, it helps individual songs to stand out more, and I think it expands the band's sonic palette in a good way. But it's not as packed with classics as Twin Cinema, so I have to be in a more cerebral mood to get into this one. I love that with Kathryn singing lead in a few spots, they've now got four vocalists, and they often find interesting ways to bring her or Neko in at unexpected moments during the Newman songs. I'll go with a B- or maybe a B.
Highlights: Dan Bejar's songs stood out most to me at first even though his vocals took the longest to grow on me - I can't get "Myriad Harbour" out of my head, and I love the chord progression and acoustic feel of "Entering White Cecelia". My favorite mellow moment is the lush "Adventures in Solitude" - I love the folksy instrumentation and it just kills me when Kathryn chimes in during the bridge. As far as old-school pedal-to-the-medal New Porno pop songs go, it's tough to beat "All of the Things that Go to Make Heaven and Earth" or the gleeful rampage of "Mutiny, I Promise You".
Lowlights: "Unguided" seems to drag on and on forever - it doesn't have the same "sweep" as some of their other ballads. While I think the title track is beautiful, there are moments when it seems to stumble over itself musically. "Go Places" and "Failsafe" also feel a bit incomplete.

At some point, I might check out Newman's The Slow Wonder and some of Case's older stuff, but for now, I'm on New Porno overload and I probably need a bit of a breather.

[Ian]

Thanks for the thread, I've been meaning to listen to TNP but haven't gotten to it yet.

[Aaron]

Thanks for the thread, I've been meaning to listen to TNP but haven't gotten to it yet.

*beginirrationalcomment* WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?    */endirrationalcomment*

[murlough23]

*beginirrationalcomment* WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?    */endirrationalcomment*

And you wonder why folks don't take your recommendations seriously. 

[bloop]

Seriously, though, you should check them out.  I think each of their albums is deserving of about a letter grade higher, on average, and I think a lot of people here might agree with that.

[murlough23]

Seriously, though, you should check them out.  I think each of their albums is deserving of about a letter grade higher, on average, and I think a lot of people here might agree with that.

That's an A or A+ for Twin Cinema. I had no idea you liked it that much.

[Aaron]

Twin Cinema is a high A in my book.

[RedcoatJones]

Twin Cinema was my introduction to the band as well, and I love that album. The album is full of great driving songs and on regular rotation for my commute.

I should probably check out the first two, as well. I've only heard a smattering of tracks thanks to my Neko Case and AC Newman channel on Pandora.

[murlough23]

I could see eventually going up to an A- for Twin Cinema. You guys have had longer to live with it than I have. I don't think I'd ever give it the full A due to the few songs I don't really care for. "A" albums have to have pretty much nothing about them that gets on my nerves.

Either way, I'm glad that we seem to agree it's their best work.

[Aaron]

I could see eventually going up to an A- for Twin Cinema. You guys have had longer to live with it than I have. I don't think I'd ever give it the full A due to the few songs I don't really care for. "A" albums have to have pretty much nothing about them that gets on my nerves.

Either way, I'm glad that we seem to agree it's their best work.

Bands can have something that gets on my nerves and still get an A. 

[murlough23]

Bands can have something that gets on my nerves and still get an A. 

I know.  think sometimes we can both be just as excited about the same thing but grade it differently. Your A might be my B+ in some cases. It's very hard to get an A out of me because I really expect an entire album to range from good to excellent with few or no dud tracks. So there could be a number of really awesome songs, but a few lesser tracks could drag it down. Maybe that's unfair, but if I do give something an A, you know I really mean it.

I've actually found iTunes handy for helping me make a quick scan of my reaction to an album as a whole and figure out how to grade it. After I've listened to something enough times, I'll go in and assign star ratings to each songs (I find that a range of 1-5 stars corresponds nicely to A, B, C, D, F.) Then, at a glance, I can see that the average for an entire album falls somewhere between 4 and 5, or whatever. That doesn't dictate an exact grade (there are things like the flow of the entire album that also matter and can't be accounted for this way), but it puts me in the ballpark. If there are at least as many 5's as 4's, and very few 3's or none at all (and definitely no 2's), that'll probably be an A. But more often than not, I like more songs than I love, so this helps me sort out the albums that are truly solid from that albums that got me excited over a few key songs while the rest is merely pretty good.

NP: "Whatever She Wants", Jars of Clay

[bloop]

Bands can have something that gets on my nerves and still get an A. 

If something gets on my nerves, I tend to question myself well before I question the quality of the work, but it's pretty hard to do anyway.

[murlough23]

If something gets on my nerves, I tend to question myself well before I question the quality of the work, but it's pretty hard to do anyway.

There are things that get on my nerves because they are experimental and "difficult", and then there are things that get on my nerves because they are trying a little too hard to be catchy - any transgressions on the NPs part usually fall in the latter category (they experiment a bit here and there, but I don't recall ever being annoyed with them for experimenting).

[bloop]

I'm not sure how I can normally pick up on "trying too hard".

[murlough23]

I'm not sure how I can normally pick up on "trying too hard".

it's just a feeling that I get. I can't substantiate it it any way, nor do I need to in order to justify my reaction.

Why don't we stop nitpicking what I dislike and start discussing what you and others like?

[bloop]

I only mentioned it because not many people considering giving them a try would think "Wow!  New Pornos puts out C to B+ albums.  Definitely something I want to rush to check out!"  I know that I wouldn't.

I say this because apparently meager praise (which I know isn't really, at least in the latter two albums' cases, but people might think of it that way) may not get the reaction you might want from folks who aren't already in the choir.

[murlough23]

I only mentioned it because not many people considering giving them a try would think "Wow!  New Pornos puts out C to B+ albums.  Definitely something I want to rush to check out!"  I know that I wouldn't.

I say this because apparently meager praise (which I know isn't really, at least in the latter two albums' cases, but people might think of it that way) may not get the reaction you might want from folks who aren't already in the choir.

What I want is to be honest, not a hype machine. If my honest reaction was that it was A-grade awesomeness, I'd say so. I do think that their earlier albums should be approached with caution and that their later albums, while very good, are imperfect.

Also, I started this discussion because I've heard very little about the band and specific tracks or aspects of the music that others here like/dislike. I was more interested in that than in trying to tell people who haven't heard they band that they should. (Though I would still advise those people to check 'em out - just start with the newer stuff.)

So, what are your favorites and why?

[bloop]

btw, on a related note, Daniel Bejar is the frontman for Destroyer, whose song I am currently pubbing.  Pretty much everyone in this band is either also a solo artist, or has other side projects.

[murlough23]

btw, on a related note, Daniel Bejar is the frontman for Destroyer, whose song I am currently pubbing.  Pretty much everyone in this band is either also a solo artist, or has other side projects.

I'm planning to check out Destroyer some day. Maybe also Kathryn Calder's other band.

NP: "Hawaii", Mew

[bloop]

I would only flip-flop a little on order:
1)  Twin Cinema
2)  Mass Romantic
3)  Challengers
4)  The Electric Version

The first two I would regard as visionary.  The latter two as very good to excellent.  I haven't done a track by track review of the band's work, being more interested in what the whole is and represents.

[murlough23]

The first two I would regard as visionary.

In what way? It's solid, quirky indie pop music and I admire it a lot for that, but visionary? There must be some subversive element that I'm missing here.

[Aaron]

btw, on a related note, Daniel Bejar is the frontman for Destroyer, whose song I am currently pubbing.  Pretty much everyone in this band is either also a solo artist, or has other side projects.

Just for kicks - the other projects from NP members:

Kathryn Calder - Immaculate Machine
Neko Case (obvious)
Dan Bejar - Destroyer; Swan Lake; Hello, Blue Roses;
John Collins - Destroyer; The Evaporators
Todd Fancey - Witches Night (FYI, Fancey appeared in an episode of The Office, and is creating music for Caprica, the upcoming prequel to Battlestar Galactica)

[bloop]

In what way? It's solid, quirky indie pop music and I admire it a lot for that, but visionary? There must be some subversive element that I'm missing here.

It's bending the rules without breaking them, the "quirk" helps to make it visionary in its own way.  It doesn't have to be "difficult" or "subversive" to be visionary.

[murlough23]

It's bending the rules without breaking them, the "quirk" helps to make it visionary in its own way.

This defines a lot of the music that interests me, but at the same time, I don't think this in and of itself is that huge of an accomplishment. They're an indie pop band; I expect quirky rule-bending. Maybe this sort of aesthetic was less common in 2000 than it is now and I'm just not keeping history in perspective.

[bloop]

I can't name a lot of indie pop bands that sound as exhuberant about their jobs as The New Pornographers, or that trade off vocal duties as effectively and with some semblance of balance, in 2000 or today.  When I think "indie rock" in this decade, I think of something a bit darker - not that there's anything wrong with that, but it was threatened to become a staid blueprint. 

The New Pornographers started out, for me, as the welcome exception.

[murlough23]

That's all commendable stuff. I like the band for all of those reasons, as well as the cryptic and wry lyrics. I'm still not convinced that this is an accomplishment of revolutionary proportions, though.

[bloop]

visionary =/= revolutionary.  Being visionary only has to do with having a lot of imagination and creativity (and, to be recognized, having the skills to execute).

Now, if they popularized their sound and songwriting style to the point that it was pretty much inescapable, yeah, then they'd be revolutionary.

[murlough23]

visionary =/= revolutionary.  Being visionary only has to do with having a lot of imagination (and, to be recognized, having the skills to execute).

Now, if they popularized their sound and songwriting style to the point that it was pretty much inescapable, yeah, then they'd be revolutionary.

Fair enough. I like imagination. As for skills to execute, i think those have improved since their early days - particularly in the vocal department, most notably for Newman. They've also gotten a better grasp on when to all belt out the chorus at once and when to be a little more restrained. I won't often say this, given my usual preference for layered vocals and layered everything, but on some of their early stuff, it's too much for me.