There’s a euphonious heart double-fast-pumping beneath lovable licks and dangerously infectious lyrical twists that fires these jangly songs along like the proverbial train full of gasoline. Where previous record ‘Modern Fiction’ wore its influences proudly on its sleeves, this time round, they’ve ripped off their shirts, spread their wings and are taking off entirely under their own independent volition.
Their last album reached dizzy heights, featuring prominently in our end of year round up, and we think that this one even out-soars that, gliding easily over the golden-hued vistas it so effortlessly invokes with each gleaming shard of indie rock excellence.
Two and a half albums into their career, you can still draw a straight line through Ducks Ltd.’s discography. Aside from a few extracurriculars and a subtle name change, the Toronto-based duo have stayed true to their core mission of keeping the Kiwi definition of ’80s guitar pop alive and healthy as retroactive interest in subgenres of rock from the following decade continue to dominate our attention.
Yet after a few listens to their new LP “Harm’s Way”, and with a bit of context from the band, these nine breezy tracks begin to solidify as a project apart from either of their past releases. While the instrumental palette feels familiar from the opening track’s guitar twangs, tight drumming, and mellow vocals, frontman Tom McGreevy and fellow guitarist Evan Lewis fill every crevice of “Harm’s Way” with ideas inspired by a voracious appetite for new musical discovery far beyond—though certainly still including—The Clean.
From the bright Telecaster sounds of Merle Haggard’s backing band, to the economical lyric-writing of The Weather Prophets and Aussie songwriter Paul Kelly, to the blown-out jangle-pop of early MBV, McGreevy and Lewis aren’t shy when it comes to sharing how the tracks they had on repeat at the time of the album’s recording seeped into the final product. They even appreciated the backing vocal work in Dehd’s recordings enough to borrow co-vocalist Jason Balla for a track while putting the album together in Chicago.
With the LP dropping tomorrow via Carpark Records, get an early taste for what “Harm’s Way” has in store For fans of: Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever / Kiwi jr / Orange Juice / the Go-Betweens / the Pains of Being Pure at Heart / the Reds, Pinks and Purples
The Fat Angel Sings 