new New Pornographers

i almost missed this, looking forward to some new stuff.

If the "First Look Video" is any indication, this will be a rock record (i.e., not "power-pop"). It sounds good.

new song on matablog today

Good tune. Also, great cover!

so, theyre trying to go back to the Twin Cinema sound, but sadly, the new song isn't so good. the chorus is ok, but the verse...

01 Moves
02 The Crash Years
03 Your Hands (Together)
04 Silver Jenny Dollar
05 Sweet Talk, Sweet Talk
06 My Shepherd
07 If You Can't See My Mirrors
08 Up in the Dark
09 Valkyrie in the Roller Disco
10 A Bite Out of My Bed
11 Daughters of Sorrow
12 We End Up Together

those are some of the worst song titles i've ever heard

Valkyrie in the Roller Disco is quite good in a GBV sort of way..

i bet Daughters of Sorrow is a Destroyer tune

yeah, was going to guess from the titles which ones are Bejar's: Daughters of Sorrow definitely. Maybe Silver Jenny Dollar too.

i dig this new song, mostly as a statement of intent (i.e., "this is a rock album -- not challengers pt. II"). not their best, but better than the title track from twin cinema, actually.

but better than the title track from twin cinema, actually.

no way!!

Yeah, what the hell is this?

otm

one of those 'oh, they're still going' bands

i hope i'll be proved wrong, but the AC Newman songwriting formula now looks overused/out-of-date-so-00's now..

It's alright, we still have Twin Cinema--the only NP record I've heard in full, and the only record of theirs I'll probably ever need.

so 00s hahaha

but seriously I kinda had the same reaction, too.

xpost

"out-of-date" Newman-style powerpop >>>> 90% of new indie-fux0r shit

uh yeah, no kidding

sorry. finding a bigger fan than me of twin cinema, the album, would be hard. but the title song wasn't among my favorites, and i know it was one of the big ac newman "rock" songs on the disc, which is why hearing the new one brought the comparison to mind.

Twin Cinema (the album) for me was the apex of The New Pornographers as an idea. Supergroups, indie or otherwise, rarely live up to expectations. TNP's had done it on several songs before that, but the Twin Cinema album was absolutely phenomenal (even Carl's title track). Such a thing will probably never happen again, but it took me over a year to really appreciate Challengers... so what do I know.

challengers is better than it was given credit for. they didn't let the songs soar (i.e., they tried too hard to make a "mature album," but the songs themselves had lots of potential). i don't see why they couldn't equal or top twin cinema.

I really like Challengers, it's got some of their best tunes on it. I'd say each record has at least six stone-cold awesome tracks, so if they can keep the quality level up I'll be satisfied.

"out-of-date" Newman-style powerpop >>>> 90% of new indie-fux0r shit

Correct. I rate Electric Version slightly over Twin Cinema for sheer tunedom, though they're both crammed with splendidness. Challengers was not as consistently compelling, but has some really excellent songs, and IMHO "Adventures In Solitude" is probably the best song Newman has ever written.

I can't snark on a band that is responsible for the existence of "The Bleeding Heart Show."

yes. bleeding heart show and sing me spanish techo stand at the top of an album of amazing high-points.

Besides being strong from beginning to end, Twin Cinema was also paced really, really well. Opening with "Twin Cinema," closing with "Stacked Crooked"? Excellent.

Would have been a perfect record had they lopped off "Broken Beads" and "Three or Four," mind.

Also, I haven't seen this mentioned elsewhere, but Challengers had some great outtakes - esp. "The Speed of Luxury" and "Fortune."

Would have been a perfect record had they lopped off "Broken Beads" and "Three or Four," mind.

so true. there's a stretch of semi-mediocre songs that do drag the album down a bit, but that's quibbling, given all the high-points -- twin cinema was my favorite album of the decade for a long time.

I like Three or Four a lot, you guys!

both those songs are awesome

meh.

At least Challengers was better than the last A.C. Newman album Get Guilty. That one never sunk in.

Heresy: All New Pornographers albums would be improved by the removal of Dan Bejar songs except "Jackie Dressed in Cobras" which is awesome.

All New Pornographers albums would be improved by the removal of Dan Bejar songs except "Jackie Dressed in Cobras" which is awesome.

^ this!

I really loved A.C. Newman's first solo album, I think that was released in '04

Never got Dan Bejar, honestly except for "To Wild Homes."

i hate destroyer but he's contributed 1-2 good songs to all the new pornos albums

!

Destroyer's Rubies is an excellent record, and 75% of Trouble in Dreams is also solid. "Libby's First Sunrise," the final track off the latter record, is probably one of my favorite songs of his.

this thread would have been perfect for you, ksh
Destroye's Rubies

didnt that get a 10 on pitchfork?

Apparently you thought the thread was "lol."

you supply the night, baby, i'll supply the lol

Let's make lots of money.

cad: 8.5

http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/8970-destroyers-rubies/

didnt that get a 10 on pitchfork?

it would have, too, if you people hadn't ruined things with all your "thread comments."

Good record imo, but it's no Have One on Me, my record of the year, which I still haven't heard.

lol

;-)

Challengers still mad underrated. It's better than everything that's followed.

"Unguided" is a bit of an albatross but "Go Places," "Myriad Harbor," "My Rights Versus Yours" and "Adventures in Solitude" are some of their very best songs

I like hearing this enthusiasm, because I really liked the first two records at the time, but am pretty unfamiliar with the rest of them except maybe Together, so will henceforth explore/relisten.

Oh man you have a world to explore then. They are so, so good, also after the first two records. Just dose it according to your preferred intake :)

And Simon H. completely otm about 'Challengers'.

some day i look forward to old-style polling new pornographers and associated solo acts

Hell yes, I'd be very much into that. AC Newman's solo album is such a treat, too. Let alone Neko.

album*s*!

Ha, verily! (my bad)

D@n and I squabbled amicably about his rankings on FB, with which I mostly disagree but who cares? Most of the writing is sharp. I'd no idea until a couple years ago that Twin Cinema is the consensus pick -- it got excellent reviews at the time but remember no real euphoria. Then not long afterward the ground shifted.

I didn't have any objections to Whiteout Conditions other than my boredom with power pop.

I never experienced Twin Cinema as the consensus pick, but then that's only in relation to my 'bubble'. Always thought the quintessential NP album was, still, Mass Romantic tbh.

But you are so right: it doesn't really matter when your discography is this consistently great.

Electric Version was my first NP album and it will always be the consensus #1 in my eyes

I think I probably burned out on them pretty early on, because power-pop, but that's my problem, not theirs.

challengers is their best album imo but yeah the distinction is meaningless

I read the Stereogum article and ended up spending some time with the catalogue as well. I'd always had TC #1, but the production is kind of lacking there.
New #1-Electric Version. (I think they could have recorded Twin Cinema the song on a boombox and it would still be great though).

Speaking of Newman's solo albums - how does everyone rate them? I had the first one and liked it fine, though it kinda felt like diet cola compared to NP material. Never followed up with his subsequent solo stuff but have been meaning to.

i like all of them but new pornographers lite is a good description

get guilty is maybe my fave

yeah same, i think the best of get guilty hangs with peak nps but wouldn't say that about the other two

I've never warmed to Destroyer the way I have his NP tracks.

love The Slow Wonder, never got into the rest

True story. I was listening to the new OMD (which is good). Next up in the queue was (I learned retroactively) "Brill Bruisers," which I'd literally never heard. The OMD album is playing when my wife pops in, but she doesn't say anything. Then seconds later I notice the music has changed.

"What is this?" she suddenly asks. "It sounds familiar."

"Well, it had been OMD, so it should be familiar," I say. "But I was just wondering what it was myself, because I think the album switched."

"Hmm," she answered. "Reminds me of the New Pornographers."

Which I think is nuts impressive, because she likes the NPs when they're on, but they're almost never on here, and she's never asked to hear them, but was immediately able to identify an album I'd literally never heard or played before (and neither had she) as the NPs. Good for her, I say. And good for them!

we should just poll them at this point, I've spent so much time listening since that Stereogum article. Thanks Dan!
Current ranking:
EV
TC
MR
BB
everything else.

Thank you again, thread revive, because I think there was a better than average chance I might not have ever listened to this band on purpose ever again, for no good reason, the ultimate taking a group for granted. But I'm loving them today.

I sort of fell into a state of ambivalence toward them for the last couple of years but Whiteout Conditions totally rekindled my love for them. It's one of my favorite records of the year.

best recorded catalog of the past 2 decades, imo

Here's the list I came up with.

not bad. jessica numbers would be the biggest omission for me.

We have arrived

Too late to play

Hard to argue with that list. "Divine Right" would replace "Testament" in the top 5, but the other 4 are pretty undeniable, especially the vocal octave leaps and drops in the chorus of "Spanish Techno," or the end of "The Bleeding Heart Show" when it goes all "Pleasant Valley Sunday."

(Psst... "Mass Romantic" is on twice.)

easy to argue with that list. "the bleeding heart show" is their best song and remains unmentioned. talk to me about the stooges without mentioning "fun house" or run DMC and "raising hell" and i tune you out

Uhm, 'Bleeding Heart Show' is Alfred number one?

aaahh. no arguments with alfred's list. i thought you were talking about the challopsy stereogum dude's. sorry!

I'll give you something to be sad about

Ranking their albums. They've shown this on both screens!

Why is this nsfw?

guessing it's a joke derived from the band name

went on a lil new pornographers ride the other day,

twin cinema deffo seems the best when going back - had a surprisingly good time with brill bruisers too

I love the way the drums get mixed on Twin Cinema.

My man Todd fancey has a new LP out today

https://ffm.to/eyesoffire

New!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fDdetA8LU4

"Really Really Light"

whoa!

We’re so incredibly excited to share our new record ‘Continue as a Guest’ with you on 3/31. This one feels extra special, as it will be our first release with the legendary @mergerecords. Pre-order is available, as well as our latest merch! We’ve also released our brand new single “Really Really Light”, paired with a beautifully directed video by Christian Cerezo. Listen + watch + pre-order: lnk.to/ContinueAsAGuest

We can’t wait to play these new songs for you all when we hit the road this spring! Ticket presale will begin tomorrow 1/10 at 10am local and general onsale begins on Friday 1/13 at 10am local. Sign up to get the presale code for your show via thenewpornographers.com. A portion of the proceeds from presale tickets sold via our website will go to @fronterafundrgv. Special guests @wildpinknyc open all shows. See below for a full list of dates.

4/19/23 - Asheville, NC - Salvage Station
4/20/23 - Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse
4/21/23 - New Orleans, LA - Tipitina's
4/22/23 - Houston, TX - White Oak Music Hall
4/23/23 - Dallas, TX - Studio at The Factory
4/25/23 - Austin, TX - Paramount
4/26/23 - Oklahoma City, OK - Tower Theatre
4/27/23 - St. Louis, MO - Sheldon Concert Hall
4/28/23 - Omaha, NE - The Waiting Room
4/29/23 - Kansas City, MO - The Truman
4/30/23 - Denver, CO - Gothic Theatre
5/03/23 - St. Paul, MN - The Fitzgerald
5/04/23 - Milwaukee, WI - Turner Hall
5/05/23 - Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall
5/06/23 - Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall
5/08/23 - Cincinnati, OH - Memorial Hall
5/09/23 - Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall
5/11/23 - Detroit, MI - El Club
5/12/23 - Toronto, ON - Danforth
5/13/23 - Burlington, VT - Higher Ground Ballroom
5/14/23 - Norwalk, CT - Wall Street Theater
5/15/23 - Boston, MA - Royale
5/17/23 - New York, NY - Brooklyn Steel
5/18/23 - Philadelphia, PA - Union Transfer
5/19/23 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
5/21/23 - Saxapahaw, NC - Haw River Ballroom

Tracklist:

01 “Really Really Light”
02 “Pontius Pilate’s Home Movies”
03 “Cat And Mouse With The Light”
04 “Last And Beautiful”
05 “Continue As A Guest”
06 “Bottle Episodes”
07 “Marie And The Undersea”
08 “Angelcover”
09 “Firework In The Falling Snow”
10 “Wish Automatic Suite”