Album Details

• Artist: The Joys
• Album: Unfold
• Label: Koch
• Year of Release: 2008
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: patchen on 2008-12-19

OK, so I know that Pop Has Eaten Itself, and there is no longer much reason to hide the fact that you are ripping a style (Martin Rev says music is in an interpretive, rather than creative, period). However, delivering 70s boogie while acting like rock soul began with Joss Stone is pushing it. You don't get points for knowing how to play someone else's riffs perfectly. The Joys party like it is 1977, but only second or third hand. They are one of Toronto's hottest acts, so what do I know? And I certainly prefer this type of old school to pop-punk or math rock, but there isn't a lot here that jumps out at you.

Vocalist Sarah Smith channels Ms. Stone, alone with Melissa Ethridge, etc. Here raspy delivery gives some teeth to the proceedings, but the titles alone give away the level of invention:"Keep tryin to try"; "I'll be here"; "See the light";"Don't look back," and so on. What, no "Keep on Truckin'?" Only on the title track that closes the set, "Unfold", does the band seem to step outside their formula and deliver an inspired, original jam. There is more feeling in that one track than in all the Foghat and Boston allusions.

"Unfold" then, will be a huge record by a band that is getting bigger as we speak. Wear that T-Shirt proudly, though; it might have a short life as cool.

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