CD Odyssey Disc 723: Whitehorse

This next album is a non-random album chosen so I could review it in tandem with the live show I saw promoting it.

Disc 723 is…. Leave No Bridge Unburned

Artist: Whitehorse

Year of Release: 2015

What’s up with the Cover? A very cool art piece by Jud Haynes, stylistically depicting the two members of Whitehorse fleeing a burning bridge. I love the way the “W” in Whitehorse forms the bridge, and the flames that burn beneath it are like the shadows of our fleeing protagonists reflected far back as though they are running into the sunset. Hand in hand of course, because while they’ve left no bridge unburned, they’ve still got each other.

How I Came To Know It: My friend and fellow music lover Kate is always on the lookout for great local concerts to go see. A few months back she sent me a link to a Whitehorse show on April 8. I’d never heard of Whitehorse, but when I starting Youtubing them I found that one of them was Luke Doucet – an artist I’d known for years.

More importantly, the music was really good, so I gobbled up all their albums over the past four or five months, including this one, which is their most recent.

How It Stacks Up:  I have four Whitehorse albums, although really they have two full length records and two EPs. I really like “Leave No Bridge Unburned” but because of the even more earnest love I hold for another record I’m going to put it second overall.

Rating: 3 stars.

Sometimes you discover a band that obviously just loves making music together, and Whitehorse is one of those bands. Sometimes that love overflows into some kind of overwrought mess without any focus or discipline. Fortunately, Whitehorse is not one of those bands. Instead, “Leave No Bridge Unburned” walks the edge of experimental without becoming self-absorbed.

Stylistically they are a mix of rock and folk, with an indie vibe. The two members – Luke Doucet and Melissa McLelland were established (if obscure) artists in their own right before joining forces, so for a new band the music’s structure is very mature, with a clear vision.

These songs could easily be folk songs, but it is clear from the opening track “Baby What’s Wrong” that Luke and Melissa want to rock it out. They make a lot of sound for two folks (more on that when I review the concert below). The layered sounds are cleverly constructed and never seem busy or muddy. Whether it is the band’s two principals or the producer, “Leave No Bridge Unburned” has a great ear for song construction, particularly how percussion and syncopation can add new dimensions to basic folk song progressions.

Luke’s guitar playing has a fuzzy reverb quality to it, and it is in nice contrast to McLelland’s very pure voice and more straight-laced country/folk vibe. There is a combination of musical styles mixing blues, rock, folk and country. At times it feels like a handshake, at other times like a sexy dance number, but you are always aware that there are two equal partners here, separate and apart, yet each giving a little to create a single art piece. It is no surprise to know that the two artists involved are deeply in love.

“Leave No Bridge Unburned” is a bit edgier than earlier albums, with more fuzz in the production and generally darker. I am feeling a bit folksy in recent years but if you are in more of a ‘rock and roll’ place, this may be the album to start with.

In terms of individual songs, I like the ones where McLelland’s pure and angelic voice is allowed to soar over top of Doucet’s bluesy riffs.  The best song on the album is “Fake Your Death (And I’ll Fake Mine).” This song makes me think about two people deciding to have a kid and move to the suburbs, and how this creates a whole new life. I’ve never done either deed (and don’t plan to) so the whole thing is foreign to me, but it is fun to see the experience through the lens of art rather than housing prices and school catchment areas.

I later discovered through some concert banter that it is about avoiding running into someone you don’t want to see anymore. That was Doucet telling the audience what he thought it was about while the writer of the song (McLelland) sat silent, so who knows. Maybe I’m right. Uncertainty is good – it makes you think.

Speaking of concerts, following is my review of that, but first – best tracks!

Best tracks: Downtown, Sweet Disaster, You Get Older, Fake Your Death (And I’ll Fake Mine)

The concert – April 8, 2015 at the Alix Goolden Hall

The first thing that comes to mind about the show is that the playlist was excellent. I got to hear every song I wanted with the exception of “Emerald Isle,” and then that got played in the encore, and all was good. This could be a function of a limited repertoire (two albums, two EPs) but that also means they have made a lot of good songs in a short space of time.

Whitehorse isn’t afraid to play the songs a bit differently either, muddying some up and switching up the arrangements here and there. Importantly, they never did this to such a degree of self-indulgence that they lost the core of the songs. Take note, Bob Dylan.

Live, I was impressed by the sheer musicianship of both Luke Doucet and Melissa McLelland. Luke plays the guitar and drums, and Melissa worked the bass and guitar. They even did multiple instruments in a single song. For example, Doucet would play a bar or two of drums and then loop and sequence it. Because it had just been played live before it was looped before your very eyes it never felt artificial.

What’s more, watching them run around from instrument to instrument was like watching your friend excitedly changing records to put on another track ‘you simply have to hear!’. It is a bit unfocused to watch, but the energy behind it is so pure you never lose interest in the spectacle.

The encore was even perfect, playing the aforementioned “Emerald Isle” and then a cool re-interpretation of Tom Waits’ “Gun Street Girl.”

The audience was a lot older than I expected. I thought I’d be one of the older people there but I was squarely in the middle of the demographic. That said, they were all serious music buffs, with the folks near me discussing the new Pink Floyd album between sets and being respectfully quiet while the band played. Everyone in the place was enthusiastic but never rude. No one tried to make the show about them instead of the performers by singing the lyrics a half beat early, or engaging in excessive ‘wooting’. I did excessively woot once at a reference to Harpo’s night club but damn it – long live Harpo’s!

On the negative side, the show had way too many delays. An hour before it started, and half an hour between the opener and the headliner made the audience a bit sleepy. (Remember, it was an older audience).

My other beef, which is becoming all too common at shows in Victoria, was the best T-shirt at the swag table being sold out.  I was disgruntled by this, but the alternate shirt was OK as well and was temporarily mollified. Then, when I found it was the first stop on their Canadian tour, I was disgruntled again. This has happened to me multiple times at Victoria shows – is it too much to make sure that you have all your merch available at the start of the tour?

The opening act was another duo; Seattle resident Noah Gunderson, accompanied by his sister, Abby. Noah could sing beautifully and was bursting with talent and promise but some of his songs were a bit overwrought. He needs to remember to enunciate the words to his songs, because dramatic effect only goes so far. He got better as he worked his way through his five song set but he didn’t drive me back to the merch table to find his CD.