Canadian indie darlings Stars’ sixth studio release, The North, is a predictably eloquent and dramatic affair, but doesn’t reach the lofty heights that the band is capable of.
Stars’ operatic, synth-driven brand of indie pop is present throughout the album, with the band’s trademark interplay between dual vocalists Torquil Campbell and Amy Millancontinuing to create interesting contrasts and extra layers to the collection of songs.
Following on from a spoken word introduction from Canadian author Glenn Gould’s radio documentary, ‘The Theory Of Relativity’ offers an energetic and strong start to the record, with layers of synth sounds and Campbell’s confident vocals combining to create a dramatic and engrossing opening.
The song also introduces the melancholic sense of nostalgia that pervades the album, with Campbell mournfully stating that “it can’t be ’93 sadly cause I wish it could forever”. This pining for a simpler time and bittersweet memories becomes a constant and unifying theme of the album.
The reminiscent tone reaches its climax in album closer ‘Walls’, where a Smiths reference serves to sum up this dominant theme of the album. “We were children / we danced to ‘Hand In Glove’’, is sung as both a joyful memory and a desperate urge to return to these simpler times.
Album high point ‘Hold On When You Get Love And Let Go When You Give It’ easily ranks among Stars’ best work, a bright and surprisingly optimistic piece that breaks away from the melancholic themes that are contained in much of the record.
In The North, Stars don’t stray far from their proven brand of dramatic synth-pop, and while not providing anything all that revolutionary from previous releases, it’s still a consistently strong and well-crafted record that easily holds its own among the band’s impressive back catalogue.
