Album Review
Rating: 6.5/10
Tokyo Police Club burst on the indie rock scene in 2006 with the concise EP release A Lesson in Crime, quickly becoming one of the most buzzed about new bands of the year. Since then, the Canadian quartet has moved cautiously through the indie rock scene. Two years and one EP later, the group released their first full length, Elephant Shell, a mid-tempo album that despite being melodically sound, left something to be desired.
So we ask the age old question: is TPC a wonderful flash in the pan doomed never to progress due to their attempt to tiptoe through the daunting industry minefield, or a mainstay to bring us fun, fresh indie rock records worth keeping on repeat for a week at a time? With less than an hour of recorded material in four years, the band gives us their answer with their second full length, Champ.
The track “Favourite Food” kicks the album off to a great start, building from a calm Dave Monks singing to the tune of an acoustic into the “we like to party”-havoc TPC are so good at. The album keeps pace through its singles “Breakneck Speed” and “Wait Up (Boots of Danger)” peaking with the surprise gem “Bambi.” Ranking as our favorite track on the album, we find the Police Club cranking out a catchy tune with late night dance party written all over it. The album goes into a bit of a lull after that with a few good – but not great – tunes starting with the anthem “End of Spark.” The guys wrap the record up with the solid track “Frankenstein” ensuring an overall good feeling.
Champ is a solid album worthy of a few dozen listens. With it, Tokyo Police Club proves to be a competitor in the indie rock battle royal. They seemed to have found their footing and making their way into the too little traveled territory of “indie rock with a smile.”
1. Favourite Food 7.5/10
2. Favourite Colour 6.5/10
3. Breakneck Speed 7.0/10
4. Wait Up (Boots Of Danger) 6.0/10
5. Bambi 8.5/10
6. End Of A Spark 5.0/10
7. Hands Reversed 4.0/10
8. Gone 5.5/10
9. Big Difference 6.0/10
10. Not Sick 6.5/10
11. Frankenstein 7.5/10
Genre: Indie Rock
(Mom + Pop, 2010)
