New Pornos' talents balance well on new album

By Lindsay Eanet

Published Aug. 21, 2007

If there ever were an Indie Olympics, there is no doubt in my mind that Canada would take the gold in every event. Not only because Canada is responsible for some of the most talented "buzz bands" of the past several years (The Arcade Fire, Stars) but also because it is home to the ultimate Dream Team: the sunny, melodic indie-pop nonet known as The New Pornographers.

In addition to six other fine musicians, the team is led by three true all-stars of the genre: front man Carl Newman, alt-country chanteuse Neko Case and Dan Bejar of Destroyer.

But though each of these three solo talents deserve a spot on an indie Wheaties box by themselves ("100 percent of your daily value of irony?"), they prove to be excellent team players on The New Pornographers' fourth album, Challengers, with the talents of all nine members working in a delightful, delicate balance.

Newman, the band's front man and principle songwriter, has started to deviate from the old, spunkier New Pornos, instead creating a more introspective, relaxed sound. The album's first single, "My Rights Versus Yours," is a self-reflective "stream of consciousness," as described by Newman. His disjointed lyrics make themselves comfortable in the delicate strumming and doo-wop harmonies of the rest of the band, as they sing the refrain of "a new empire in rags," with the communal effort bringing an air of beauty to a seemingly depressing image.

Newman offers solid efforts on the rest of his tracks, including the catchy sing-a-long "All the Old Showstoppers" and "Unguided," an epic tribute to New York City.

Although Case doesn't have any songwriting credits on Challengers, her soulful, introspective singing works well when mixed with the more subdued tracks on the album. The acoustic guitars and minimalist lyrics on the title track give Case a lot of room to show off her craft, filling the sparse song with intricacy and warmth.

It is Bejar, decidedly the oddball of the group due to his surrealist, vivid style of songwriting, who brings new elements of style and surprise to the band's formula on his three tracks (the rest are penned by Newman). "Myriad Harbour," already a live favorite and a darling of the indie-music blogs, is one of the band's best tracks from any album.

Bejar is very good at marrying images with melodies, and when the band whispers, sneers and glides through the thoughts of Bejar's protagonist, the song begins to unfold into a rich, picturesque tale that is more film than music.

"Entering White Cecilia," a recount of a sexual encounter, has all the bounce of the typical New Pornos track but with the added sensuality of Bejar's seductive, if not genuinely dirty, lyrics. Breathy, haunting backing vocals from Case and Kathryn Calder are enough to vaguely arouse listeners.

The sweeping closing track, a rehash of the Destroyer's "The Spirit of Giving," is full of bright-as-a-Christmas-tree holiday imagery, sounding very much like a Christmas single that only the New Pornos could pull off, with the band's church-choir harmonies and singable refrain of "It's your turn to go down now" perfectly complementing Bejar's distinctive songwriting style for a short but oh-so-sweet finish.

As indie pop's dream team, The New Pornographers continue to challenge their fans to take note of their creative risks, as well as one another to be the best band possible. Teamwork and effort continue to make the group victorious.