Dragonslayer

Checked this album out as I am a fan of Wolf Parade and have enjoyed all of their stuff in the past. This was my introduction to Sunset Rubdown and I can say that it is everything I liked about Wolf Parade if not more. The edgy lyrics and heavy driving/wailing guitars are all there in addition to what I think are more creative and unique lyrics and songwriting. The last three tracks on this album were probably my favorite of the year - grow on you each time you listen; powerful throughout with phenomenal lyrics, great guitar/percussion layering, and an ebb and flow of intensity that keeps your interest.The indie rock world is in need of more bands like this - rock and roll with a pleasant indie twist. Nightingale/December song is the epitome of what Indie Rock should be in my humble opinion.Bottom line - if you like harder indie rock including Wolf Parade, Black Keys, or even Band of Horses, you are missing out without this in your collection.

I have followed Spencer Krug's career for quite some time and think that this album has actually eclipsed his work with Wolf Parade. The album is listen through with 4 songs that I really see as highlights: Silver Moons, Idiot Heart, Apollo and the Buffalo and Anna Anna Anna Oh!,and You Go On Ahead. The album has a great flow and is something I often put on while reading or catching up on emails. It has a different sound then Random Spirit Lovers which I really like and the back-up vocals of Camilla Wynne Ingr sound great when played off the frayed voice of Spencer Krug. If you are a fan of bands like Arcade Fire, Wolf Parade, and the National this band is well worth your time. The packaging of the vinyl edition is also great for collectors and as an added bonus it comes with a free code to get all of the album's songs in MP3. Great value.

Great album, the vinyl pressings themselves are very skippy, seriously though, awesome album.

I discovered Spencer Krug from Wolf Parade. The first song off of Apologies to Queen Mary, You Are a Runner... got me hooked on his singing, and songwriting talents. If you liked that song, or any of Wolf Parades great tunes you will love this album.

Love this album from start to finish, so glad to add it to my collection!

Most casual observers dismiss Sunset Rubdown as a side project from Wolf Parade member Spencer Krug. Maybe it was because Wolf Parade is on a bigger label, and there was just more hype surrounding the band's debut, but with the fourth Sunset Rubdown album Dragonslayer, hopefully charges of 'side project' will be laid to rest.It was hard to know what to expect in the weeks leading up to this release after the band's previous album, Random Spirit Lover. That album was great, but you really had to give it time and let the songs emerge through repeated listens. If you were patient, then it paid off as any serious Krug fan will attest to. Dragonslayer however pays of instantly. To be sure, it gets better each time you listen to it, but it's easily the band's most accessible album to date.The biggest difference is that Dragonslayer is more of a live record. There's not a lot of overdubs or studio tricks and they don't have to 'figure out' how to pull these songs off at a show. Most of the band's previous work were creations of the studio (or Krug sitting in front of some keyboards and a lot of editing software), but Dragonslayer is more of a 'band' album.Krug's vocals are in rare form and if you didn't like his voice before, nothing here will change that. I think if you were confused by their last record, this newer one will be a welcome addition to your album collection. It sounds like the type of songs Krug wrote for Shut Up I am Dreaming, but with the production and style of his contributions to Wolf Parade.It was hands-down my favorite record of last year and makes me even more excited for what they'll come up with next.

What an amazing album. It gets better every time I listen to it. Rising and falling crescendos, hushed, then triumphant and devastating all at the same time. Wow... Spencer Krug is a blank-ing genius and wholeheartedly deserves whispers (sometimes shouts) about his being the best of today's songwriters. The first time I heard him was Apologies to the Queen Mary (another gem), and wasn't sure about Krug's warble. Thank heavens I kept listening. Buy this. Now. Enjoy. by Dronester ADDENDUM: So when's the next Sunset Rubdown record, Spencer? Please, we need more, as I am thoroughly addicted and this music makes everything right in the world.

Good liked fast delivery

Ok, so I'm a crusty old Bowie fan but I came across this album as a suggestion on Amazon Music and it blew me away. The algorithm gets it right sometimes, who knew. Best "rock" album I've heard in ages, though I use the genre label very loosely. This album is bonkers and brilliant. Love it, love it, love it.

Awesome

Démarré comme un projet solo par Spencer Krug, moitié chantante de Wolf Parade et collaborateur régulier de Frog Eyes, Sunset Rubdown est au fil du temps et des chansons devenu un véritable groupe, au sein duquel, sans présager de la part de démocratie qui y règne, les musiciens qui le composent ont l'occasion de véritablement s'exprimer.On s'en rend immédiatement compte à l'écoute de ce Dragonslayer où les omnipotents claviers de Krug ne règnent plus en maitre, mais sont rejoints en tête de proue par des guitares malines, des percussions hypnotiques, et une basse cajoleuse.Cette nouvelle configuration apporte un surplus d'énergie, et peut-être de cohésion aux chansons, qui perdent par la même occasion une partie de leur originalité et de leur excentricité. On pense ainsi beaucoup plus à Wolf Parade ici qu'on ne le faisait à l'écoute de  Shut Up I Am Dreaming  ou  Random Spirit Lover . On pense aussi parfois à Arcade Fire, pour cette faculté que les deux groupes ont désormais en commun à rendre fédératrices et vibrantes les émotions qu'expriment sans détour et avec force trémolos leurs morceaux. Il nous semble aussi que l'esprit du génial Bowie des années 70 est invoqué par ces chansons lyriques et épiques, qui ne reculent devant aucune ascension, pas même les plus ardues et qui, grâce à des qualités mélodiques hors du commun, repoussent ingénument les risques de se casser la gueule avec fracas en s'empêtrant dans des boursouflures progressives. L'emphase et la théatralité, trop souvent fossoyeuyes du bon goût, sont ici, fait rare, les meilleurs amis de ces chansons radieuses, aux structures alambiquées mais fluides, savantes mais pop, qui dévalent des montagnes russes de notes avec une grâce rarement démentie et sans jamais tomber dans l'écueil d'en faire trop. Non, ces hymnes intimes, qu'on n'entendra jamais dans les stades, nous transportent et nous transpercent, portés par le chant qui touche au coeur de Krug, parfois accompagné par des contrepoints toujours parfaits d'une voix féminine qui réhausse encore ces morceaux, déjà bien assaisonnés, d'une pointe de magie.Ainsi, on l'aura compris, les meilleurs moments de cet album touchent au sublime et s'incrustent dans nos synapses au fur et à mesure des écoutes répétées qui révèlent de nouvelles strates hypnotiques d'instruments et de sons.Comme tous les élèves que l'on s'est habitué à voir tutoyer l'excellence, Sunset Rubdown a élevé notre exigence au point qu'on en attend et espère toujours plus de lui que de ses congénères qui se débattent sans inspiration dans la normalité convenue d'un indie-rock de plus en plus formaté qui n'a jamais aussi mal porté son nom. De ce fait, au cours de ce Dragonslayer, Sunset Rubdown semble parfois perdre de sa superbe et au moins deux chansons ne se hissent pas à la hauteur qu'atteignent sans effort la troublante Silver Moons, le grandiose Dragon's Lair qui conclut le disque, l'agité Black Swan ou encore le sublime December Song. Plus ordinaires, ces chansons possèdent pourtant toutes ces moments où l'on abandonne tout réticence pour s'y abandonner, qui font qu'on ne souhaiterait pour rien au monde ne les avoir jamais rencontrées.Plus ramassé et concis que son prédecesseur, l'inusable  Random Spirit Lover , plus classique à bien des égards, ce très beau Dragon's Lair est une nouvelle preuve éclatante du talent de songwriter de Spencer Krug et de la vitalité essentielle de sa musique. Shut Up I Am DreamingRandom Spirit LoverRandom Spirit Lover

There is much to commend on Spencer Krug's second release as Sunset Rubdown. He has really caught the zeitgeist of 2009's true indie-rock. Piggy-backing Dirty Projector's well-received release  Bitte Orca , his Dragonslayer is equally eccentric and unconcerned with mass unit-shifting. It takes the same eccentricity Wild Beasts have so skilfully mined in their second album, pitching it will great aim at the correct and fickle bastion-barometers of taste.Dragonslayer is naturally epic, but rather in subject matter than risky scope. To that end, and despite Krug's own claims to the contrary, it possesses the fanciful, concept qualities that The Decemberists harnessed so well on  The Hazards of Love , whilst retaining a degree of indie, cult status akin to that achieved by Neutral Milk Hotel.Krug's native Montreal, and Canada as a whole, is yet to recapture its Midas touch so prevalent a couple of years ago but consistently solid releases, such as this, will steady the ship. Along with his other, relatively successful side projects Swan Lake and Frog Eyes (and the much-overrated Wolf Parade), Krug is proving dependable. However, on Dragonslayer, he is not the star alone. Keyboardist and backing vocalist Camilla Wayne, provides entirely complimentary, ear-catching vocals to balance Krug's Byrne-isms.Although some of the material on Dragonslayer is merely playing the role of a supporting cast (Paper Lace), it is often offset by sweeping and affable tales of butterflies and black swans. With this in mind, those hoping for an album of equal stature to the critically-lauded debut may be left quietly, but satisfactorily, indifferent. 10-minute closer `Dragon's Lair' however steals the Dragonslayer show for pure pomp and coherency, at least the latter half of it does with waves of crescendos and deservedly overdone bombast. It ties the meandering tales to a fire-breathing objective, one achieved, if it set out to calmly please and gently baffle. Bitte OrcaThe Hazards of Love