The difficulty in writing about music is excellently articulated in an article, originally printed by The Believer  in 2009. "Dancing About Architecture" (full text can be found here, luckily), points out that music can be such a subjective experience, that the act of writing can, when it seeks to communicate an experience in words, often fall short. I was struck by this thought when writing about some of this week's songs, especially the track by Tops. "Easy Friends" is a fairly straight forward track and one that I liked a lot, but, again, how to explain it to you accurately and without falling into a series of cliches. Then again, cliches can, despite what your writing instructor often tells you, be very useful. If your goal is to communicate to as many people as possible, the meaning is often not most universally discussed by using conventions in which everyone is intimately familiar with, which, in this case, is a cliche. That said, it is a somewhat thorny issue that cannot be thoroughly approached in a short column meant to tell you about some new music released this week.  I include it here merely to point out how interesting the continued discussion about music can be even from the standpoint of something as basic as writing about music on a regular basis. Here, without further pseudo intellectual rambling, is this week's edition of Listener's Digest.

Tops - "Easy Friends:" Montreal band, Tops, will be releasing this as a 7" next week. Easy going and poppy, the song features jangling guitars and unique female vocals.

FIDLAR - "Cheap Beer:" You have to admire the brazen youthfulness of this track. The band name is an acronym for "fuck it, dog - life's a risk," which seems to sum up the ethos of this whole song. A sloppy ode to cheap beer, which I can definitely get behind (because PBR isn't so bad when it is cold, no seriously), "Cheap Beer" is a great example of raucous garage rock with a great opening.

Teen Daze - "New Life:" It has hit home that I have been writing about synth driven electronic songs all summer and that every song alternates between this and garage rock. I apologize if that has gotten boring but there have been some really enjoyable things put out within these genres. "New Life" is an atmospheric track driven by synths and smooth vocals and the first single of the act's second album this year, which is set to be released this November.

The Album Leaf - "Descent:" A gorgeous instrumental track off of the quartet's upcoming EP. "Descent" masterfully employs guitar and synths to creating a sweeping track that grows in magnitude over time. This is a great change of pace from the alternating synth pop/garage rock cycle I just discussed. A pensive and satisfying song.

The Black Keys - "I Got Mine" (Tobacco Remix): OK, so this track came out a day before my normal cut off but it was just such a great remix, I had to include it. This remix, done by Black Moth Super Rainbow's frontman Tobacco, mixes sensibilities to create a much stronger version of this song, in my opinion.

Over the course of the last few years, the independent pop scene in Montreal has become quite vibrant, birthing a slew of interesting up-and-comers.  Largely at the center of this movement is Arbutus Records, a label that has shed light on deserving artists like Blue Hawaii, Braids and Grimes and helped to make the city a music destination if you happen to be North of the Border.  


TOPS are Arbutus’ next bunch of heat seekers, and though their album cover might make one think they’re a bunch of fresh faced youngsters, the quartet has actually spent a good deal of time playing in various Montreal bands of past and present including Silly Kissers and Pat Jordache.  Their level of experience shines through on Tender Opposites, a record full of ethereal pop music that shares a lot in common with the AM radio sounds of the 70’s and 80’s.


The most noticeable feature of TOPS’ arsenal is the vocal work of Jane Penny.  Her voice is reminiscent of Stevie Nicks and contemporary singers like Laetitia Sadier of Stereolab and Andrea Estella of Twin Sister to name a few.  She’s able to provide a punch from the mic, should one be needed, as on the ramshackle breakdown of "Turn Your Love Around" but she can also stay out of focus, floating somewhere above the music, which she does to great effect on the spaced out wanderings of "Rings of Saturn".


The band is able to change gears throughout Tender Opposites, moving from reserved, slower compositions like "Double Vision" and "Evening" to the Ariel Pink aping disco/rock of "Diamond Look" and "Go Away" and impressively they do this without missing a beat.  Even when they make an instrumental track, in this case it’s album closer ‘TOPS Theme", it seems to be perfectly considered and built to fit in perfectly at the end of the record.


Tender Opposites succeeds both as a pop record and as something from out of left field.  The blending of the avant-garde with the everyday makes for an infinitely approachable record and one that rewards the listener throughout.  It’s familiar at some points and completely alien at others, but it’s always accessible.  With such a solid debut under their belts it wouldn’t come as a surprise if TOPS eventually achieve the same level of indie stardom as their label mate Grimes.  But, even if the accolades and press don’t come they’ve got nothing to be ashamed of, on Tender Opposites, it’s job well done.


Grade: B+