The New Pornographers - crash years, 2010

"Ah, the old bait and switch. The first leak from the New Pornographers' forthcoming fifth album Together, the sorta-title track "Your Hands (Together)", was OK, and its brawny guitars had obvious to those turned off by the gossamer melodies of 2007's underrated Challengers. But the song's lack of a central hook - the kind that made 2005's Twin Cinema the band's finest moment - left some wondering if Carl Newman and his band were overcompensating, perhaps as a result of the tepid critical reaction to Challengers. Together single "The Crash Years" proves that notion wrong. Like a lot of the band's best work, almost everything here seems designed to hit a pleasure center, from the Bridge on the River Kwai-like whistling that follows the chorus, to Neko Case's typically compelling lead vocal take, to Newman's unmistakable penchant for non sequitur songwriting. Yes, the presence of a cello suggests that Newman hasn't given up his more orchestral ambitions just yet - but here, the instrumentation is used to drive the melody forward, providing a low-toned counterpoint to Neko Case's upper register. Breezy yet professional, intricate yet immediate: when the Pornos are at the top of their game, as they are on "The Crash Years", not much else is this satisfying."