Canadian indie-rock outfit Ducks Ltd. continues to explore the balance between anxiety and joy on their second full-length album. Carrying on the good work of their debut “Modern Fiction” back in 2021,
“Harm’s Way” recalls the swoonsome, jangly indie-pop of bands like The Go-Betweens and Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever.
Ducks Ltd. make inviting and frenetic guitar pop for when life feels overwhelming. While the band’s songs are ostensibly breezy, a palpable anxiety boils underneath that communicates something deeper about everyday existence. On their latest album ‘Harm’s Way’, the Toronto duo of Tom McGreevy and Evan Lewis hones in on interpersonal and societal collapses, urban decay, and the near-impossibility of keeping a level head when everything around you seems to be falling apart.
The band wanted to bring ‘Harm’s Way’ to life in a new city, with an outside producer, and with some of their favorite musicians. Working with producer Dave Vettraino, they enlisted a marquee cast of Windy City collaborators to round out the tracks on Harm’s Way, including: Macie Stewart (Finom); Marcus Nuccio and Julia Steiner (Ratboys); Jason Balla (Dehd); Nathan O’Dell (Dummy), Margaret McCarthy (Moontype), Rui Gabriel (Rui Gabriel/Lawn), and Lindsey-Paige McCloy (Patio).
‘Harm’s Way’ is Duck Ltd.’s most intuitive and organic album yet, the result of keen observation, self-possessed song writing, and a collaborative spirit. Building on the successes of their previous releases, the deeply relatable album displays a band operating at a nuanced, lyrical and musical best.
“Hollowed Out” is a lush, definitive evolution for Ducks Ltd.. Known for their brand of jangle pop and brilliant melodic guitar playing (a la Flying Nun or Sarah Records), Ducks Ltd., are in their fullest form here with Macie Stewart providing string arrangements and Julia Steiner and Margaret McCarthy on backing vocals. A song about living with decline (inspired by a Toronto sinkhole), its bright, indelible catchiness serves in contrast to its lyrical unease.
“The Main Thing” is out now on Carpark Records / Royal Mountain Records.
The Fat Angel Sings 