Review:

on 2011-07-19 Chavey Said:

Theres something in the water in Montreal; a poison has leaked into its icy waters that turns its lucky victims into hipster musicians. Sheer odds say that, sooner or later, this phenomenon is bound to backfire, turning out lackluster copycats fallen ill from an over-saturation of scene. But fortunate for frontman Charlie F. and the rest of the lads that make up Montreals latest export, Winter Gloves has escaped so harrowing a fate. Forget gloves; the bands first studio album, About a Girl, sports an energetic brand of party-pop thats warm and fuzzy enough to keep your ears nice and toasty.

Learning from their fellow Canadians, About a Girl pulls some inspiration from a few, more established, hipster bands. There is a subtle sexuality to the combination of drummer Pat Sayers pulsing umtz-ah drum beats and Charlie F.s raspy falsetto, yet the sound is rough around the edges and rave-able.

Still, Winter Gloves carves out a unique sound comprised of dominating keyboard and rumbling bass. A low bass guitar grumbles throughout the album, acting almost like white noise and adding depth to the dance beats supplied by the keys and drums. Charlies lilting tenor is just edgy enough to cut through the bouncing backup, punctuating plenty of perky oh uh ohs, oooos and hey heys.

Between his frequent come-ons and handclaps are surprisingly thoughtful lyrics especially for a native French speaker writing in English to the tunes of indie dance tracks. The albums first single, About A Girl, presses through tense beats with questioning verses like, You move and sip every drop to extract from the glass / Wondering why God, this anger any way? between bouncing verses of hahas.

The album is full of happy dance tracks, but Winter Gloves is more than just a party-maker band. Although on first listen the tracks seem all too similar, a second glance brings out the subtleties that make each melody memorable. The band lays unique instrumentation, (especially their specialty instrument the glockenspiel), and brooding lyrics over synthy dance beats and buzzing keyboards. Its hipster hip-shaking music; a pensive pop.

About a Girl ends on a sweet note with one of its best tracks, Piano 4 Hands. Its relatively subdued, relying heavily on lightly plunking piano and soft vocals to carry the melody, and accompanied by the occasional drum clap and xylophone flourish. The song tells the story of reigniting the spark, with lyrics like, I cant recall the last time you and I had a lazy afternoon / Here we are, young lovers / put two hands on the black keys / Ill play something that puts us back together for good.

Whether causing frenzied chaos on the dance floor or wielding a fine glockenspiel, Winter Gloves is easy to love. Its a band that stands up to the high standards held to Montreal hipsters and, with About a Girl, has proven its musical chops.

Not Rated