Japandroids - "No Singles"
I’ve never envied the position a largely successful album places a band in with regard to having to come up with the ideal ‘follow-up’ release. Perhaps this is due to conflicting expectations among music consumers: some anticipate further development of style while others lambast any change at all. It seems the artist really can’t win either way. What's even more interesting is that while many view a particular follow-up as a flop, there is always a microcosm of people defending the work as pure genius, the kind of challenging and thought provoking art only a true music aficionado understands.
As one of the most likable garage bands in recent years, Japandroids gifted us with Post Nothing (2009), a magnificent fuzz fest debut of dreamy sophistication, full of unpretentious glory. Rising to universal acclaim, Post Nothing injected bite, youthful enthusiasm and churning melody back into underground music. As far as sound, Post Nothing was a return to what many cherished about 90s indie. When I see these guys, I personally get a nostalgic sense that takes me back to the glory days of Superchunk. But while Japandroids doesn't sound like Superchunk, they certainly invoke a similar vibe with plenty of euphoric peaks around every corner.
After delivering one of the most memorable debuts in recent years, the Vancouver duo of Brian King and David Prowse decided to release a multitude of new 7” singles throughout 2010, thus forgoing a proper second LP. In lieu of a follow-up to Post Nothing, the band released No Singles, a Polyvinyl compilation of two earlier EPs (All Lies and Lullaby Death Jams ). As this is older material, the doom and gloom of the dreaded "follow-up" do not apply to these EPs, and what’s more, it seems to further validate Post Nothing as a brilliant release building on the band's previous efforts. So this in a way takes the pressure off the critic as well as the band. While I don’t think No Singles is particularly bad for what it is, I am happy for what it isn’t.
Knowing that No Singles is a compilation of two early EPs allows me to ease up on things like song sequence, which I feel is all wrong on this release. That was another aspect of Post Nothing which was perfection; everything flowed so nicely from track to track. The disjointed structure of No Singles is a bit of a distraction. Nonetheless there are a few shiny spots. It is also interesting to hear Japandroids in their “pre” Post Nothing state as it allows the listener to truly appreciate the bands refinement and growth. You definitely hear on this release ”something there”, and Post Nothing assuredly underscores this notion. Furthermore, No Singles gives the impression of half a band proceeding with a rehearsal before the rest of the band arrives. Granted, they are a two-piece, but Post Nothing forged a wall of sound that was much more than just two good friends playing drums and guitar.
Briefly, what I feel are the redeeming tracks on this release are track 2: ‘No Allegiance To The Queen’; track 4: ‘Lovers/Strangers’; track 9: a cover of Mclusky's ‘To Hell With Good Intentions’; and track 10: ‘Press Corps’.
In conclusion, No Singles succeeds somewhat because it demonstrates the evolution of Japandroids through the greatness of Post Nothing, and reaffirms that King and Prowse are on the right course. Now for a proper follow-up.
