Album Details

• Artist: The Paper Cranes
• Album: Chivalry's Dead
• Label: Unfamiliar
• Year of Release: 2009
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: MusicCritic on 2009-10-12

Paper Cranes are a husband-wife duo hailing from Stateside - British Columbia, to be precise. I should mention also that 'Chivalry's Dead' is not their first rodeo, and in some ways this record has many hallmarks of a sophomore release, but it's kept the freshness of the sound and the same ska-esq energy.

Musically, it's very good. Lyrically, it's also very good - clever, a little sarcastic and perfectly delivered by Ryan McCullagh. It's a little remeniscent of Pavement on Prozac, and nods to the iconic ska riffs of Madness and Kasabian's early guitar work stand well alongside a harmonica (eh?) and some skilful keyboard work. The title and opening track is a definite high point, along with the darker 'Thorazine Shuffle' and the technical 'Telephone'. A stand-out track for me though has got to be 'The Cavalier'. Its hooky, catchy and the lyrics are very clever, and I will more than likely be humming it all day.

There are a couple of lows, track three 'Occidental Accidents' is quite average and a little repetitive, and the finishing 'Ice Burgs' is only OK - the twosome almost seem to have run out of energy at this point, which is a little out seeing it's an eight-track release clocking in at just under half an hour. Not a great deal there to work with, but what there is seems promising.

User Reviews and Comments

on 2009-09-04 Archelon Said:

Rating: 7/10