New Pornographers' "Together"

I think I listened to the New Pornographers’ new album “Together” ten times the first day I bought it. Needless to say, I am a big fan. After both a friend and the girl in the record shop told me wonderful things about it, I contemplated if the New Pornographers were capable of putting out a mediocre album. Their fifth album “Together” is composed entirely of catchy anthems, in suite with their brand of skilled songwriting. In “Together,” Canadian mega-group the New Pornographers stretch their ability even further, incorporating wider orchestration.

Nine songs are written by A.C. Newman, three by Daniel Bejar. “Together” begins with ‘Moves’, a song that carries the traditional New Pornographers sound of pleasing harmonies. We recognize this again in the third track ‘Your Hands (Together)’. The second track ‘Crash Years’ produces something different. The combination of the carefully crafted drumming, tambourines, and Neko’s serenading vocals make it an instant favourite for me. The hook crafting of the New Pornographers is effortless and echoes throughout the album.

Unlike “Challengers” released over two years earlier that seemed to hold a sadder and more serious feel, few quieter songs appear on “Together”. The exceptions are the gentle, ‘Valkyrie In The Roller Disco,’ which places an emphasis on the piano and banjo and sounds like it could have appeared on “Challengers”. The other is Neko Case’s solo song ‘My Shepherd,’ which carries a melody similar to Neko’s solo work. “Together” on the whole makes a greater effort to feature Neko’s unparalleled allure. The song ends with horns played by The Dap-Kings. Other guest musicians that appear on this album include Okkervil Rivers’ Will Sheff who sings in ‘Moves,’ Annie Clark of St. Vincent who plays guitar in ‘My Shepherd,’ and Beirut’s Zach Condon who plays the trumpet in ‘A Bite Out Of My Bed’.

Not to be forgotten are the pop ballads of Daniel Bejar. “Silver Jenny Dollar” and “If You Can’t See My Mirrors” are two of these. I cannot help but jack up the volume when these play. Neither is far from his work in Destroyer. They make me want to power-purr more than cat massage lady’s fortunate cats!

“Together” is made in memory of Lynn Calder, mother of Kathryn, vocalist and keyboardist in the New Pornographers. As the album’s name suggests, they sound more “Together” than ever. While we expect nothing less than greatness from the New Pornographers, they still manage to surprise us in the turns and delights of every song. I can already feel that this will be the soundtrack of my summer. I just hope my roommate likes this new album half as much as I do.

The New Pornographers will be in Montreal June 17th at the National. Tickets can be found at Cheap Thrills.

1. Moves
2. Crash Years
3. Your Hands (Together)
4. Silver Jenny Dollar
5. Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk
6. My Shepherd
7. If You Can’t See My Mirrors
8. Up In The Dark
9. Valkyrie In The Roller Disco
10. A Bite Out Of My Bed
11. Daughters Of Sorrow
12. We End Up Together

The New Pornographers: http://www.myspace.com/thenewpornographers
Neko Case: http://www.myspace.com/nekocase
Destroyer: http://www.myspace.com/destroyer
Kathryn Calder: http://www.myspace.com/kathryncalder