Thin Mind - Wolf Parade: Review
is a Canadian indie folk band who blew up on the back of an incredible debut record, 2005's Apologies To The Queen Mary.The group disbanded early on in this decade but reformed for a moderately well received comeback record in 2017. Now after a three year gap of playing live shows and releasing a pair of singles the band is back with a fifth studio record in Thin Mind.
Review By Lavender:
Wolf Parade's 2005 debut record Apologies To The Queen Mary is one of the greatest indie records of all time and despite near universal praise to this day I still think the record doesn't get nearly the credit it deserves. Since then I have always enjoyed the work of Spencer Krug with Wolf Parade and under other aliases but nothing has ever quite felt as groundbreaking or unique. Thin Mind however takes a big step in the right direction specifically with a fantastic instrumental palette that makes it one of the best things I've heard the band do since their iconic debut.
The story of this record kicked off with its three singles that combine for an excellent collection of tracks that had me very excited for the record. The great lead single Against The Day has some absolutely immaculate keys that were one of the best things I heard all last year. It's one of the more simple tracks compositionally but that helps to make it incredibly catchy. The second single Forrest Green is another of the records more straightforward songs but it features an incredibly smooth riff and a loud punchy chorus that calls back to some of my favorite Wolf Parade classics. Finally came Julia Take Your Man Home which features some driving percussion with moments of stripped backed vocals interrupted by wailing guitar riffs. The song is once again a winding and complex ride but so rewarding from start to finish.
This record was already off to a good start and there isn't much to complain about from there. Under Glass is a great opening track with a lead guitar riff that's smooth as hell. Spencer's stop and start vocals are as great as ever and the confrontational nature of the track gives it a great edge that I love. Out Of Control is a super tight composition that sets up some blocks to be perfectly knocked down on the tracks high points for some moments of absolute genius. The tight instrumental is paired with some wandering vocal melodies with visually compelling lyrics to make for a flat out fantastic song.
Fall Into The Future is a super interesting song with some wailing guitars I love and while the melodies aren't some of my favorites on the record the instrumental is incredibly tight and the bridge absolutely rules. Wandering Son is another piece of amazing instrumental work that features some shoegaze like riffs and some bouncy intricate instrumental bridges that sound straight out of XTC's Generals And Majors. While the vocals are a little bit hammed up on the verses the chorus absolutely rules and makes up for it 100%. Finally the closing track Town Square is one of the most inherently emotional songs on the record which makes for some sweeter moments. I'm not head over heels for the very first portion of the track but I absolutely LOVE the instrumental breakdown in the middle and how it comes back even stronger to round out the song and album on a big high note.
There are a few tracks I have complaints about on the record but even then most of them are pretty minor. The Static Age is one of the more mellow approaches on the record but it lets Spencer do some excellent vocalizing. The track isn't that long but the lyrics and melodies do get a little bit run down by the end of the song and makes its climax less exciting than it could have been. As Kind As You Can may be my least favorite song on the record it starts off like its going to take a true ballad approach but never really commits to it. The instrumental is muddy and I just wish I could hear what Spencer had to say more clearly because I love his lyrics on the track.
Thin Mind may be the best Wolf Parade album since their legendary debut, and that is coming from somebody who has even enjoyed a lot of their work since. The album is a nonstop series of instrumental bliss from the simplest to most technical and is already in line to be one of the most substantial treats in indie music this year. Now that the band is properly back in form I'm happy to let them take their time and drop great records whenever they are ready to, because Thin Mind provides plenty to chew on. 8/10
