The Dears: Gang of Losers

Coworker/Musical genius extraordinaire, Matt (who can be found at both hardcorbeau and Sound Effects) passed this off to me to give a listen (or 36) to.

Besides being a well-constructed, alt-rock album, Gang of Losers also feels like it borrows from a number of classic rock sources. I've been banging my head against the wall trying to catalogue them all, but the only one I definitely know for certain is the similarities between Sinthtro and the beginning of the Moody Blues tune "Your Wildest Dreams." While some may not see this as a good thing, I think they manage to pay homage to classics while crafting their own tunes. Maybe it's intentional. Maybe it's not.

What to listen for? The whole disc. Barring that, Sinthtro into Ticket to Immortality, Death or Life We Want You, Whites Only Party (which you can check out the video to it here), and I Fell Deep.

As is also the habit of bands these days, the album has a pair of bonus tracks which are home demo of Whites Only Party and an acoustic version of There Goes My Outfit.

In the end: This ain't Dylan's Modern Times, but it doesn't need to be. It's a solid album, front to back, and makes me want to pick up the back catalogue of this Canadian group. And, hey, I don't even *LIKE* hockey.

On the Web: Hype Machine offerings abound.

Technorati tagged: The Dears | Alt-Rock | 2006