View Larger
Rate it!
Avg: 3.5 (104 ratings)
- Date Released: March 24, 2009
- Genre: Alternative/Punk
- Style: Alternative
- Label: Jagjaguwar / SC Distribution
A brilliant indie "super-group" finally becomes a "band"
-
We Say...
Beast Moans, the 2006 debut of the Canadian indie supergroup Swan Lake — consisting of Dan Bejar (Destroyer), Spencer Krug (Wolf Parade, Sunset Rubdown) and Carey Mercer (Frog Eyes, which also counts Krug as a member) — sounded a lot like its title: threads of scuzzy guitars and ramshackle percussion played by primal beings looking to make a little noise before natural selection caught up with them. The band's second album Enemy Mine (which takes its title from a brutally stupid sci-fi novella from the '70s) focuses a bit more on atmosphere and melody, which cuts down on its icky thump but gives it a pleasantly surprising, genre-hopping sheen.
Each participant wrote three of the album's nine songs, and their individual sensibilities shine through while still allowing for some collective chemistry. Krug's "Paper Lace" is a folksy acoustic roll that features below-the-surface etchings of guitar feedback and organ hums — as though Krug is trying to keep Bejar's Destroyer-evil from overtaking the tune. Bejar returns the favor on his "Heartswarm," which opens with the line "Do my eyes deceive me, or is it truly Springtime in Paris for that piece of shit?" and is everything great about Destroyer (the darkness, the fuzz, the cynicism) with a healthy dose of melancholy from his bandmates. It's a delicate balance, but the trio manages to be everything to everyone (and each other) without falling off a cliff. The album's centerpiece is the disc-closing "Warlock Psychologist," which matches a gorgeously ominous bass hum, end-of-the-world snare snaps and all three band members' haunting voices building to a noisy world-coming-down climax. Enemy Mine could have easily fallen apart under the weight of three dominant personalities all trying to assert themselves, but their individual jiu-jitsu blends seamlessly with their form-like-Voltron moments. Swan Lake are finally a band. -
They Say...
The second offering from Canadian indie rock stalwarts Dan Bejar (Destroyer, New Pornographers), Spencer Krug (Sunset Rubdown, Wolf Parade), and Carey Mercer (Blackout Beach, Frog Eyes) does its best to strip away the group's penchant for layering multiple songs atop each other, but a three car pile-up is still a pile-up, and listeners who have managed to remain immune to the trio's idiosyncratic brand of "thespian rock" will no doubt find much of Enemy Mine unlistenable. That said, fans of manic melodies, bohemian pageantry, and synapse melting lyricism have no greater modern champions than Bejar, Krug, and Mercer. Named for the 1985 Wolfgang Petersen-directed, race relations sci-fi film that found Dennis Quaid delivering enemy Louis Gossett, Jr.'s alien baby (out of Louis Gossett, Jr.) on the volcanic planet Fryine IV, Enemy Mine walks a lo-fi, Berlin-era Bowie tightrope spooled out over an abyss filled with unreleased material from each artist's aforementioned bands -- the trio's musical styles and flowery "high speak" are so similar, that it can be difficult to match the singer to the song. The first half of Enemy Mine feels less collaborative, but yields some true gems in "Paper Lace" and "Heartswarm" -- the latter could've have easily been pulled from Destroyer's This Night. Midway in however, the trio tosses the bottle into the fire and throw their arms around one another for a good old-fashioned art rock beat-down on "Peace," which sounds like the The Folded Palm, Apologies to the Queen Mary and Your Blues playing simultaneously on huge outdoor speakers, proving that when these gentlemen decide to get down to apocalyptic business, it's best to jump into the nearest foxhole and watch the fireworks from afar.
“ The indie iTunes — Hardcore music fans are migrating to eMusic, the iTunes Music Store's cheaper, cooler cousin.”
Rolling Stone
eMusic Tip
Paid downloads are counted towards an album discount but free downloads are not.
COMPLETE FOR FREE!
You can download the rest of the tracks from this album for free! Just click the Complete Album button.
We’re sorry this album can only be downloaded using paid subscription download credits.
We recommend you Save it for Later by clicking the Save for Later button shown just above this message. For a list of related albums you can download right now, check out these recommendations.
We'll give you 9 additional free credits to download this album and start your paid subscription.
Get 9 bonus credits on us if you download this album. Sweet!
| 01. |  |
Spanish Gold, 2044 |
5:15 |
|
| 02. | |
Paper Lace |
3:44 |
|
| 03. | |
Heartswarm |
4:34 |
|
| 04. | |
Settle On Your Skin |
2:59 |
|
| 05. | |
Ballad Of A Swan Lake, Or, Daniel's Song |
3:40 |
|
| 06. | |
Peace |
4:07 |
|
| 07. | |
Spider |
2:44 |
|
| 08. | |
A Hand At Dusk |
6:07 |
|
| 09. | |
Warlock Psychologist |
5:57 |
|
09 Total Tracks, 39:07 Total Length
Loading...
Playlists If you like Swan Lake, check out these member playlists
Credits
- Paul Gold - Mastering // John Congleton - Mixing // Chris Frey - Photography // Reg Lech - Cover Art
Choose from over 7 million
music downloadseMusic features legendary and emerging artists in every genre: classic rock to classical,indie to international, soundtracks to spiritual, jazz to country and many more.
MP3 downloads work on any digital media player
With eMusic, you OWN your music without any restrictions. Burn music to a CD, play it on your computer, mobile phone or any digital media player - including iPod®, Zune® and Walkman®.
Songs available for 50¢ or less
eMusic subscriptions start at just $11.99 a month for 24 downloads - that's just 50¢ per song! And it gets better from there - our plans go as low as 42¢ per song!
Music Discovery
eMusic is about discovery. We make finding new music fun again with music recommendations from our award-winning team of music experts, member playlists and new music features.
Cancel anytime
With all the great music and site features we're pretty sure you will love eMusic. If not, no problem. You can cancel at any time and keep the music you have downloaded.
© 1992 - 2009 All Media Guide, LLC