Wintersleep

Canadian indie-rock band Wintersleep just released their 5th album, Hello Hum about a month ago on Roll Call Records. This was my first time listening to Wintersleep but I was impressed nonetheless. Hello Hum is filled with several great tracks. These guys are certainly not new to the game though; in 2008 they won Canada’s Juno Award and also played on David Letterman in 2011. It is hard to pinpoint exactly who they remind me of because there is an undeniable familiar sound but with a little bit of a twist. There are traces in the vocals and tone that are extremely close to that of British band The Editors. Especially in track 7, “Rapture”, it is like a double of the Editors. I don’t feel like it’s at all a mimicking act though. This track is great, especially the distinct tone of which it’s being sung.

This album was recorded mostly in the summer of last year with the help of Scottish producer Tony Doogan, and Dave Fridmman who has working with Neon Indian, MGMT, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, the Flaming Lips, and several other notable acts. It must be a common trend for Fridmann because he has helped with yet another successful album. There are so many great aspects to Hello Hum; if you want to listen without thinking, there are easy to listen to tones and rhythms but if you are looking for a deeper connection and meaningful lyrics they have you covered there too.

Track 3, “Nothing is Anything” is a song about losing the love of your life, it goes from sadness to anger, and then back to yearning for their love again. The good quality is that with such a heavy meaning there is the lightness of the sound itself that accompanies.

Track 5 “Permanent Sigh” has really different rhythms and a presence of several unusual instruments for the every day type band. The change in pace throughout the song kept my interest and just generally created an enjoyable song, although the meaning of the song toys with the idea of leaving someone a suicide note.
If I had to choose my favorite song from this album, I’d just have to go with them all. But really, I love this album and think it could be one of the best, if not the number one release I’ve listened to this year. There’s no better place to listen for Wintersleep than here on KTSW but this is also an album worth permanently adding to your music library as well.