Die Happy: Metric Has a New Record Out

Metric

Metric is certainly not a band that is new to me, or this blog.  I have been completely enamored with them since their fourth album, "Fantasies" came out a decade ago.  I have written reviews about subsequent albums that you can read here and here.  They are a band that has long dominated space on my SD card.

So, imagine how happy I was a couple of days ago to learn that Metric had released their seventh studio album, "Art of Doubt".

I have been streaming it in my car ever since.  On the way back from the bus stop, after picking up my high school daughter, she listened for a bit.  "Is this Metric?" she asked.

"Yes," I answered.

"I knew it!" she exclaimed.  "All of their songs sound the same."

And she is right.  Over the years, the band has developed what can only be quantified as a "sound".  Danceable drumbeats.  Infectious guitar riffs.  '80s style synthesizers.  Emily Haines' chirpy soprano.  This band has always taken a proverbial page from Missing Persons.

So, it all sounds the same.  So what?  This album is so catchy that you don't care that it mirrors other albums.  It tastes good.  You like it on the first listen.  It is palatable, delectable, and saccharine, which makes you forget Haines' sometimes dark lyrics.  ("Is this dystopia?")  There is an ethereal quality added to this record that could be explained by producer, Justin Meldal-Johnsen, a know aficiando of dream pop, having produced bands such as M83.  This shows on songs like the almost "Dressed to Suppress" and "Risk".  But never fear - the band remains unapologetically new wave as on songs "Love You Back", "Die Happy", and "Anticipate".  My personal favorite songs are the angry "Dark Saturday", the contemplative "Seven Rules", and the centerpiece, "Art of Doubt", which actually rocks pretty damn hard at times.

There are so many hooks on this record that they will grab you with their sharp barbs and never let you go.  Definitely check this one out.