By
John Bergstrom 29 September 2011
Ivy instrumentalist Adam Schlessinger finds himself in the unique position of being a member of not one but two bands that must wonder where they fit in, in 2011. Fountains of Wayne, for whom Schlessinger is bass player and a principal songwriter, released Sky Full of Holes a matter of weeks before All Hours’ street date. Fountains of Wayne’s classic power-pop is at odds with current art-school and beard rock trends in “indie” music. “College rock” was how you might have identified Fountains of Wayne when their debut was released in 1996. Now the term no longer has meaning.
When Ivy released their first couple albums in the mid-‘90s, college radio played them, too. Their more cosmopolitan, late-night sophisti-pop slotted in with the likes of Autour de Lucie, Saint Etienne, the Cardigans and the like. Now those bands have been relegated to cult status or disappeared completely. Pop music, indie or otherwise, comes with an obligatory set of ‘80s references. All Hours doesn’t go all synth-pop. But Ivy’s first album in half a decade does represent something of a rethink from the band.
The trio of Schlessinger, fellow instrumentalist Andy Chase, and singer Dominique Durand constructed All Hours around programmed rhythms. Then, they added keyboards and clean guitar lines, rather than the other way around. The result is a crisp, often danceable album that sounds even more .......
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POP MATTERS
