There must be something in the water in Canada. It seems like every cool band in the last 18 months has risen from The Great White North to tear the proverbial roof off. Retro enthusiasts STARS join the ranks of artists GRIMES and CARIBOU to become Canada's greatest attraction since Celine Dion. Well.. maybe skip that last one
And lucky for us (and you), STARS have given us an EXCLUSIVE preview stream of their new record 'The North'. !!!!!!!. Its ok. Keep breathing. (Check out our reviews of singles 'Backlines' and 'Theory of Relativity')
'The North' is abound with influences, from the ARCADE FIRE vocal shake on 'Do You Want to Die Together', to the soft timbre of FLEETWOOD MAC on 'Lights Changing Colour'. The NEW ORDER influence shines through on track 4 'Hold on...'. The mechanical drum clatter and guitar sound have a definite Peter Hook and co. feel about them.
There's a lot to take in on this album. As the influences above suggest, STARS traverse a lot of territory here. Consequently, its quite a task to try and characterize the record in brief. But we'll try...
Tell The Mighty Boosh to stop searching for the new sound. Its been in Canada all along.
Words by Dominic Sciberras
