When indie scene-stealers, Wolf Parade take the stage, the dual lead vocalists capture the attention of everyone in attendance. So what happens when you take one of those dynamic musicians and pair him with his wife? You get the Handsome Furs. Wolf Parade guitarist Dan Boeckner and wife Alexei Perry’s latest album, Face Control, showcases Boeckner’s unique voice as he crawls through themse of dealing with 80s Soviet Russia.
The Canadian two-piece crafts sonically interesting songs featuring Boeckner’s guitar playing and vocals. Boeckner’s voice, however, is as much of an instrument as his guitar or Perry’s bare bones synth. The opening track, “Legal Tender,” owes more to New Order when they were fresh out of the shadow of Joy Division, than modern trendsetters Franz Ferdinand and Arcade Fire. Perry’s synths practically scream bright city lights, while Boeckner yells out “It was nothing / It was nothing to me.” The line may make no sense, but it sounds cool, which pretty much sums up this band and this album.
The album’s nocturnal feel is back in the third track, “Talking Hotel Arbat Blues.” Boeckner’s guitar sounds like a nursery rhyme gone bad, layered with delayed distortion, while he beckons “I don’t know what I’ve been told.” Perry seems to be forgotten, however she holds him in check throughout the song, making him take a step back from the cliff that he always seems to be teetering on throughout the album. Face Control culminates in the track “All We Want, Baby, Is Everything.” The dream-like riff that runs through the chorus is the perfect soundtrack for your sleepless weekend, while the usually straining Boeckner lets loose a relaxed “All we want, baby, is everything,” as if that isn’t too much to ask.
On the second half of the album, the paranoia and communist romanticism come into play. With song titles like “Nyet Spasiba” and “Radio Kaliningrad,” it’s hard not to think of some sort of real-life Boris and Natasha playing guitar and synthesizers for the hipster crowd. “Radio Kaliningrad” is the embodiment of this. Starting with nothing but sonic fuzz and echoing guitar, it eventually builds into a full-blown Soviet dance party. Boeckner’s projects have always reflected the insomniac paranoia and frenzied state of mind when you’ve been up for too long, and this is an extension of that.
Handsome Furs’ Face Control is a solid album that shouldn’t be thrown in the scrap heap that side projects so often find themselves in. It’s interesting to hear Boeckner outside of Wolf Parade even though sometimes you can’t tell the difference. But there are moments throughout where the simplicity helps bring out aspects of his voice that got lost in the fold occasionally with Wolf Parade. Also his wife is hot so they’re probably more fun to watch live, so keep that in mind.
Face Control is cool just for the sake of it, but what it lacks in meaning, it makes up for in hipster points.
