Canada strikes back! Jeremy Greenspan and Matt Didemus together form the highly underrated electronic duo Junior Boys and for 2011 they follow up the amazing “Begun Dull Care” with the also amazing “It’s All True”. But before I get into the review (and since is the first review I make of Junior Boys) I’ll take some time to talk about their previous work.
In the beginning, Junior Boys were constantly rejected for their experimental and lo-fi room-made songs from 1999 to 2004 when they released their first LP “Last Exit” (some EP’s before that), a poorly produced album that demonstrated the awesome creativity of the band and the ability to create quirky synths to go along with the sweet vocals; this first album was like the little train that could and became a moderate hit of that year in some indie circles. Time Passed and for the 2006 release “So This Is Goodbye” everything changed, the production was sounding brilliant, the synths were tight and from beginning to end the album was 80’s revival and swag, relaxing airy songs but with seriously dance vibes that never made it to the party scene but could be really enjoyable. However nothing really matters when it came to the 2009 release “Begone Dull Care”, this was the million dollar baby, amazing production, amazing musical progressions and patience, they take their time to reach perfection on each and every song. Despite the awesomeness of the band “Last Exit” still sounded more quirky than the others and that’s always a beautiful thing.
The amazing thing about “It’s All True” is that Junior Boys are not trying to move forward with each and every album, the natural progression between the first three albums was not necessarily incoherent between one and another, but with the good production quality the quirkiness got lost on the way until this year. The opener “Itchy Fingers” opens with an upbeat move and amazing 80’s revival synths to then jump to the airy “Playtime” that has airy keyboards and in the middle Asian instrumentation. I also love how the quirkiness is back in every song.
On other note, if there’s one thing Junior Boys have mastered through the years is that they have the capacity to take a really long and soft song and keep you interested until the end, is something that this year can be compared to Cass McCombs or Destroyer as well, and Junior Boys always take time to work each song.
Another win for Junior Boys is the ability to give cohesiveness to all their discography with this album, I won’t say that this album is better than “Begun Dull Care” but I see myself being seriously addicted to this album in a similar way that I did with the 2009 release, in part because I’m patient with my music and I love the way that Junior Boys take their time to deliver every song.
This album is a High-Class-Pop-Dance glory and a world cultural reference tribute to the 80's dance pop, so I'm sure you'll enjoy it.
Tracklist:
1. Itchy Fingers
2. Playtime
3. You'll Improve Me
4. A Truly Happy Ending
5. The Reservoir
6. Second Chance
7. Kick the Can
8. ep
9. Banana Ripple
Rate: 8.7/10
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