Cole Revell
Parlovr are a three-piece out of Montreal, crafting a self-professed “stripped down, salacious and spastic” breed of indie pop. Their self-titled debut is bristling with nervous energy, somehow corralled into concentrated, three minute bursts of melody. Underneath all their shambling glory, many of the songs collected here are reminiscent of your other favorite Canadian band, The Arcade Fire. Parlovr borrow a lot from their fellow citizens’ musical playbook: everything from song structure to a preponderance of bombastic shout-alongs, and even particular vocal tics characteristic of Win Butler and Co.
Listen to “Pen To The Paper” – DOWNLOAD MP3
But for all the similarities, Parlovr never sound tediously derivative or plagiaristic. On the contrary — it seems like Parlovr didn’t really put much thought at all into how anything sounded on the album, like they really don’t give a fuck about anything other than kicking your ass. From anthemic opener, “Pen to the Paper,” through the slow build of centerpiece “Speech Bubble/Thought Cloud,” and onto the silly stomp of the album’s last (shhhh… secret) track, Parlovr accomplish just that. Superbly paced and executed with just the right amount of off-the-cuff flippancy, Parlovr is a solid, fully formed debut, and only points towards better things to come.
Ω
Jake Renn
Vee Hua 華婷婷
Navi Esparza