[rating=4.00]
Sloan, The Waxwings, and Roman Candle, are three bands that came to mind when listening to the debut album from Yukon Blonde, a Canadian outfit formerly known as Alphababy. Their music is pleasant and airy; poppy and hooky, but not too daring. Lyrically satisfying and filled with good grooves, but nothing that stands out long after the album finishes. Maybe one or two of their songs makes a mixtape but as a whole the albums feel a bit slight and non-cohesive. I would check them out at a local venue, but only if the schedule allowed it. There is nothing wrong with bands like these. They have or (have had) solid mid-level careers playing venues that attract loyal fans who sing along over a couple beers and always purchase merchandise at the end of the night. Their music is good, perfect for background at parties or trips around town in the car. There is just nothing substantial that deserves repeated listens.
With Yukon Blonde, the issues lie in the arrangement. Jeff Innes, Brandon Scott, and Graham Jones sing together in tight harmonies that glide the songs effortlessly across the power-pop tinged melodies and are complimented by Adam Newton’s bass. You just get the feeling you heard this better from other bands. “Babies Don’t Like Blue Anymore” jingles along finely until you realize it’s not Fruit Bats who do this kind of thing better. “Wind Blows” and “Loyal Man” are pieces of pastoral acoustic-guitar driven pop that come off sounding Fleet Foxes-lite. The cleverly written “1000 Years” tells us that this is enough time for empires to come and go, but would not be long enough to “tear down your walls”. Good sentiments but the song sounds better as “You Never Know” from Wilco. “Brides Song” is one track where the band stretches out a bit and hits a groove. They play confidently throughout the five minutes and there is a sense of conviction in the lyrics that is lacking in the tracks that come both before and after. I want to hear more of this! I know it is in there somewhere.
Press releases praise the band for sounding like Fleetwood Mac, Supertramp, and Crosby/Stills/Nash. Throughout the review, I have also pegged them in the same vein with some additional, more contemporary artists. While these comparisons are nice as a reference point, they become burdensome when evaluating Yukon Blonde’s music. The tunes serve as compliments to these other bands without standing on their own. It is a nice collection of songs, but they lack originality or dynamics. There is no trademark sound on any of the tracks that would distinguish their music as uniquely their own. After regrouping and changing their name, I have a feeling the four members of Yukon Blonde want more than this. Otherwise, it would have been mighty easy to move on to day jobs after the last Alphababy tour. Today, you can’t become another Fleetwood Mac but you can succeed like Sloan and Roman Candle within the realm of regional headliner. Yukon Blonde is well on their way in their Canadian homeland. Perhaps the time on the road can help the band to grow further away from these pigeon-holed typecasts and move towards a more creative and singular sound that becomes more their own and less someone else’s song.
