I was a latecomer to the music of The New Pornographers – sure, I’d heard the name for the past few years, but never really had any sounds to attach it to. Then in early 2009 I got hooked on Neko Case and that quest for more music lead me straight to the New Pornographers.
Admittedly, my first forays into the band were limited to tracks featuring Neko – but when their latest album “Together” was released in May of 2010, I decided to listen to the disk from start to finish. I found that this is truly an album – a collection of songs meant to be heard “Together” in the order they’re presented.
The disc starts out with “Moves” – which begins with each instrument and voice playing in a very staccato fashion – sure there are harmonies and overlapping rhythms, but the staccato nature of the song is very prominent – it’s not an easy song to listen to repeatedly, but it’s a perfect start for the album, and we’ll see why as we move through some of the rest of the tracks.
The strings at the end of “Moves” create the perfect transition for the second selection: “Crash Years”. The clip below shows the band performing the song live on ‘Late Night with Jimmy Fallon’ on May 6, 2010.
In the clip above, The New Pornographers are Blaine Thurier (Keyboard/Synth), Todd Fancey (Guitar), Neko Case (Vocals), Carl (AC) Newman (Guitar), Kurt Dahle (Drums), Kathryn Calder (Keyboards/Vocals), and John Collins (Bass). They are joined by and are Ben Kalb (Cello) and Miranda Brown (Guitar).
Why do I think “Crash Years” is such a great choice for the second track? First, you throw the vocal duties to Neko Case – and you really can’t go wrong there. Secondly, it’s incredibly catchy with the whistling tags to the choruses. The third reason goes back to the musical definition of ‘staccato’ – ‘detached notes’… or notes that are not “Together”. When things that are detached come together suddenly, they ‘crash’. Hmm.
For me, this CD was like unlocking a secret code. Song by song, the concept of coming together seems more and more reinforced by the lyrics and arrangements, as well as the very placement of the tracks. The third, “Your Hands (Together)” really drives the point home. It seems to draw the listener back to “Moves” as if to say “do you see where we’ve been, and do you get where we’re going?”
“Jenny Silver Dollar” is like a sorbet. It cleanses the auditory palate – it’s sweet and harmonious power-pop from Dan Bejar. At my first listen, it was evocative of the Hollies and the Kinks in some ways – seeming to have roots in the late 60s/early 70s.
The rest of the CD continues in the same pattern – disconnectedness, with flashes of coming together. The dichotomy is occasionally even present in the same track. “Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk” is a fine example. Peppered throughout the disc there are plenty of chances for the listener to catch their aural breath.
The last song in the collection sealed the deal for me. “We End Up Together” is amazing. It melodically, lyrically, and thematically ties together all of the tracks that precedes it. The first part of the song suggests that you’ve been privy to a really complex presentation – and asks if the listener picked up on all of the clues.
Then the outro at 4:20 begins – the staccato themes present through the disc resolve in the lyric “We End Up Together”, and the last 30 seconds has the band being a band, together
Am I reading too much into this? Yeah – probably. But that’s what art does for me. It causes me to question what I think I knew and re-frame it based on my own experience, and how that might coincide with that the artist may have intended.
“Together” is in heavy rotation in my playlists right now. If you’re looking for a sonic journey filled with some great songwriting, musicianship, and production – this one won’t disappoint!!
If you don’t have the CD yet, and are curious about what you’ve read – check out the band on Amazon:
