MiS | Moving in Stereo

One of my most anticipated releases of 2009 dropped yesterday, in the form of The Lovely Feathers’s third album Fantasy of the Lot. I saw them play in their hometown at Pop Montreal in 2006, opening for the buzz band of the moment, Tapes ‘n Tapes.  They were playing in a bizarre Ukrainian church that I nervously found walking aimlessly in the streets of its Francophone working-class neighborhood.  The Feathers were the clear highlight.  Throughout the show, I was amazed by the energy, quirkiness, and pop pastiche exhibited by the band.  They immediately reminded me of a band universally loved by all of us here at MiS, The Features, mixed with some XTC and Loud Family for pomp and circumstance.  They had the same kinetic, back-and-forth energy, curious eye rolls from the lead singer, and all-around manic energy displayed proudly by Matthew Pelham & Co.  Beyond that comparison though, was the off-kilter and non-linear song structures, straight from the Scott Miller school of songwriting.  Since that first performance, I picked up their early releases and managed to catch the band as an opener at the Boulder Theatre.  Despite the dubious distinction of making my dissertation because none of the band members seemed to have heard that Canada funds popular music (I’m happy to see they’ve switched labels and joined Tin Star Orphans at Sparks Music!), the guys in the band were gracious and I think surprised by the large smattering of fans who left after they left the stage (they had opened for the very different avant-garde band, The SLIP).

The Feathers were probably most accused in their early releases of being quirky for quirky’s sake (top tracks included “Rod Stewart” and “Pope John Paul” from previous album, Hind Hind Legs)  While the new album exhibits the same quirkiness to an extent, it’s more focused and directed toward creating an album of unabashed hooks and melodies.  These guys have only gotten better, through honing and sharpening their song craft.  And, the recording captures the band much better than previous releases.  While some of the pure madness is lost from its earlier albums, I think this is a more coherent and identifiable collection of songs, which should only help the band garner a larger fan base.  With all the albums receiving praise this year, of which I’m still searching for the hooks, I simply don’t understand how these guys won’t get more attention.  I wish Monolith knew about them, because there are few other small, indie bands today that deserve to be heard by a large audience.

The band’s album was only released in Canada yesterday (available through Zunior.com), and the U.S. will see the album release later this summer.  I hope then, the band will embark on a tour of the lower 48.  No previously unheard band has impressed me so much in concert, and the Boulder show only backed that up and then some.  These guys take the pop sensibilities of their albums and create an all-out dance party when they hit the stage!

First single “Lowiza” can be had for free, direct from the band here.

Listen to streaming samples of each song via Zunior.com here.

The video for “Frantic” (taken from Hind Hind Legs) captures some of the band’s early promise and pop.