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.

Metric Conversion: Metric Measures Up On "Pagans In Vegas"

Metric

If you have ridden for extended periods of time with me, you know.  If you have ever have received the ubiquitous CD mix from me, you have probably figured it out.  Metric is one of my favorite bands.  The ultra new wave "Fantasies" is probably in my top ten albums of the the last ten years, and I gave "Synthetica" rave reviews a few years ago.  Metric really measures up on their sixth studio album, "Pagans In Vegas", released on September 18th.

And how do I measure an album?  Before the review, I download the whole album to the phone, and, when I am done with my critique, I delete everything save the songs that I like.  I will be keeping this whole album on my phone.  Metric has done it again.

The record starts out with a finger-snapping jam named "Lie Lie Lie" where Emily Haines (who also performs with Broken Social Scene) sings the bitter, sarcastic lyrics with a sickly sweet voice.  The harmonies make it even more dangerous.  "Fortunes" begins mid-tempo with a Casio-sounding keyboard.  Only a band like Metric can make that sound work, and only Metric can load their songs full of hooks like their main single, "The Shade".  "Celebrate" explores their penchant for electronica with its sweeping chorus.  "Cascades" is probably my favorite song on the album - pure synth pop, complete with robotic vocals, yet avoiding sounding too cheesy, and actually turns out to be quite a beautiful tune.  "For Kicks" is their New Order rip-off, complete with a high-end, Peter Hook-style bass line.  Yet they pull it off, so we'll forgive them.  "Too Bad, So Sad" is their quintessential "Pagans In Vegas" song.  It sounds like a night out on the Strip.  If Metric gave a nod to New Order, then "Other Side", featuring James Shaw on lead vocals, is their homage to early Depeche Mode from their "Speak & Spell" days.  "Blind Valentine" is another Vegas song, except this one imagined in the bedroom.  "The Governess" once combines Haines's delectable harmonies with saucy lyrics.  The album finishes out with "The Face Part I" and "The Face Part II", two ethereal instrumentals.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how you make the perfect album.  Metric is well-versed in crafting the rich and full-flavored pop songs.  They proved this a long time ago, and I have known this since I discovered them six years ago.  Metric makes new wave much more cool than it was in the '80s. At this point, they can rub our noses in it - they are good.  And they know it.

Moroni's Review of Metric's "Synthetica"

Right off the bat, I have to say that I am totally obsessed with this album.  This one of those albums that I am lucky to come across that I am able to listen to over and over again.  But that is not the first time that Metric has done this to me.

After I downloaded this album, my wife Martha came into the bedroom while I was listening to this.

"Who is this?" she asked.

"Metric," I answered.

"Are they very big?" she asked.

I shrugged.  "Yes.  I guess they are now.  One of their songs was the main song in one of the Twilight movies.  That kind of put them in the spotlight.  But they have been around a long time, and I was into them way before Twilight."

"I've noticed that you and the lady who wrote the Twilight novels are into the same type of music," Martha observed.

That annoyed me.  But it is true.  My Chemical Romance, Muse, Metric, Blue October.  These are bands that Stepenie Meyer and I both share in common.  And although I really HATE the Twilight series, I am forced to admit that they have pretty good soundtracks.  Muse (whose new album I will be reviewing soon) was a special jewel of mine that very few had ever heard of until Twilight came along.  I remember my teen daughter raiding my music library, picking out music suggestions that Stephenie Meyer had made on her website.  Suddenly, every teen girl knew who Muse was.  I don't know why that annoyed me so much.

So it was with Metric.

I was browsing new music and stumbled across Metric's third album "Fantasies".  I bought it without ever having heard it.  Throughout the summers of 2009 and 2010, while I was working the fair circuit, this album played constantly - over and over.  I did not get sick of it.  I am still not sick of it.

When Metric released their fourth album, "Synthetica", I was worried that they might not be able to do it again.  But I was wrong.  This album is very good.

From the first sad tones of the first track "Artificial Nocturne", I was hooked.  "Youth Without Youth" is the first single off of the album, and it is not even one of my favorite songs.  In truth, there is not a bad song on this album.  Once again, Emily Haines breathy vocals blend perfectly with the effervescent, dreamy quality of sound that pervades this whole album.  It is a great concept album.  They take "New Wave" to a level it never quite reached in the '80s.

My favorite tracks are "Speed the Collapse", "Dreams So Real", "Lost Kitten", and "Synthetica".  But really, the whole album is very good.  I would suggest this album to anyone.  And just ignore that whole Twilight thing...