It's a good thing You Say Party! We Say Die! grew up in British Columbia, where the forecast more often than not calls for gray skies and a 90 percent chance of misery. There probably wasn't much for these hipsters to do on rainy days in the '80s but to hang out in their parents' basements, listening to the latest by Depeche Mode and practicing catchy pop riffs on their guitars.
And on their third album, the simply titled XXXX, the Vancouver neo-new wavers finally come into their own by delivering 10 moody but sing-along-y tracks filled of insanely catchy beats and thumping bass lines. You might assume the album's title references porn or other mischievousness — but, in fact, the letters stand in for a four-letter word — and not the one you're thinking of either. Love is at the emotional crux of this album, and, as such, frontwoman Becky Ninkovic sings her heart out with hypnotic angst about the subjects of heartbreak, romance and the general uplifting power of amour over moody vibraphone keyboards, punk guitar riffs and syrupy drum beats. Good stuff.
Tuesday, March 30, at the Pike Room, 1 S. Saginaw, Pontiac; 248-858-9333. With Lettercamp and others.
Celeste Moure writes about music for Metro Times. Send comments to [email protected].
