When you casually listen to The Five Ghosts you might be tempted into thinking nothing changed. Stars have long built their legacy on a melancholic mix of electro pop and indie rock that appeals to older, Morrissey loving sad-sacks and dancey-pants kids alike and for the most part that still holds true. It’s hard to ignore the way Torq and Amy trade vocals, finish each others thoughts and respect each others boundaries and after a run of successful LPs, theirs was as close to a perfect vocal marriage as the Canadian indie scene had ever heard.
Unfortunately, like so many marriages ten years insome of the spark is gone. That’s not to say the love isn’t still there, but The Five Ghosts seems almost as if they’ve slipped into a false comfort and even Milan admits they’ve “never been good with change.” When “Elevator Love Letter” grabbed me from across the room or the start-to-finish success of Set Yourself on Fire had me ready to say “I do”, The Stars won me over with wide-eyed optimism and an almost naive charm. Now, Torq and Amy are so familiar with each other that those finished thoughts seem more out of a habit than endearment and the decision to change their crisp melodies into a more fuzzy, distorted static seems more like an attempt to rekindle the fire.
The saddest part about the subtle but distinct change in sound is that even when Stars falls short of our sky-high expectations, they are still one of the better bands in Canada. The Five Ghosts is full of solid moments, creative expression and some outstanding songs that stand proudly near the top of Star’s catalog (“Dead Hearts” and the driving “Wasting Daylight” are fantastic), but too many of these great moments get lost in the muddled mix. The electro-fused melody of the single “We Don’t Want Your Body” struggles as the blips and fuzz contrast Torq’s voice and derail an muscular Milan chorus (although, rhyming ‘ecstasy’ and ‘sex with me’ is a bit much). The same can be said about the sample that takes away from the build and nice strings on almost perfectly executed “How Much More.” Normally, when the band slows the pace to let you catch a breath, the results are tender and pure but here songs like “Changes” and “Winter Bones” lose the listener (at least this one).
At the end of the day, The Five Ghosts is sort of like walking through heavy sand on a secluded beach; the views are beautiful and the setting is spectacular, but the effort required to enjoy eithger is surprisingly taxing.
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
MP3:: Stars – Wasted Daylight
MYSPACE:: http://www.myspace.com/stars
Sadly, I concur. There’s a real lack of romanticism on The Five Ghosts, the key element that made Set Yourself On Fire and Heart such stellar albums. I dare say on some tracks it just sounds like they’re phoning it in. Great moments are there, but they don’t come together to make a great album. I was optimistic that I would grow into loving it, but beyond “Dead Hearts” and “I Died So I Could Haunt You” there’s little I’m in love with on The Five Ghosts.
Dear Jim
Everyone knows that you have to give an album time to appreciate its sound.