Handsome Furs on Face Control

With so many disgustingly cute husband/wife duos popping up on the minimalist indie pop market, it might feel hard to compete. But Handsome Furs are slowly grazing into the popularity realm of those like Mates of State and Matt & Kim. Besides rugged good looks and rockstar couple appeal, Handsome Furs tote folkloric songs with a bit of electricity. The band is comprised of Dan Boeckner (whose immediately-recognizable voice first made our acquaintance at the front end of Wolf Parade) and Alexei Perry on synth and drum machine. The music started in 2006 with a spur of the moment Scandinavian tour, followed by the release of Plague Park in 2007 by Sub pop records.

Although its release has been delayed to March 10, we got a sneak peak of the new album, Face Control, which showcases the duo's stamina and passion. The sophomore record shows much more synergy and confidence between Boeckner and Perry. Songs like "Evangeline," weld a diachotomy of Boeckner's raspy vocals and metronomic instrumental cadences. While minimalist music can sometimes be the most impressive, it can quickly turn boring when it's the main concept of an album. The essence is somewhat lost by the time we hit the kitschy Joan Jett knock off, "Talking Hotel Arbat Blues." That said, the following two tracks, "(Passport Kontrol)" and "All We Want, Baby, Is Everything" transcend simplicity to humanistic, sincere musicality. Where Plague Park presented romantic choruses, Face Control shows pulsating dance beats. Oh, the album title also has some cool background to it—apparently in Europe bouncers have the authority to reject customers from bars based solely on appearance, hence the phrase "face control." (We're assuming Handsome Furs didn't have this problem, but felt bad for those who did.) All in all, it's worth a thoughtful listen, because who the hell knows when Wolf Parade will give us something new to listen to.