Sloan, The Double Cross

By Jemiah Jefferson

Canadian four-piece Sloan is one of the world’s most enduring cult-item bands (for everyone living outside Canada, that is; in the wily north, Sloan has been a ubiquitous source of pride for a large part of their twenty-year history). There’s a reason for this continued affection, slavishly on display at any of their raucous, friendly live shows: Sloan is a known quantity, and all ten of their albums lie on the spectrum between pretty damn good and iconically brilliant.

Perhaps still best known for early successes Twice Removed and One Chord to Another, Sloan’s sound has barely changed since 1999’s Between the Bridges, itself a quantum leap in sophistication and complexity. They figured out a formula that works, and in that formula there are enough superb influences that none of the albums becomes boring.

However, there are those who would prefer more evolution in their favorite bands, seeking the kinds of startling reinventions that started becoming commonplace in the late ’90s and early ’00s. Sloan isn’t going to have a dubstep track; it’s unlikely that they’ll go country or put out a Kid A. They are a cottage industry of smart, literate anthem rock and The Double Cross seems to indicate that they’re going to stay that way.

That’s okay. Sloan found a balance between four immensely strong songwriters, ensuring that each album contains variety and a viciously competitive vetting process. No filler; all killer, if the thoughtful tracks could possibly be described with such a hostile word. The Double Cross provides a couple of raging rockers, a sweetly melodic love song, a couple of fascinating short stories, and lots of lyrics featuring romantic frustration. All the songs are quite short: the longest, fist-pumping singalong “Unkind,” clocks in at just over four minutes. Still, none of the songs seems inadequate, incomplete, or rushed; the songs are so tightly crafted that there’s no need for further embellishment.

Don’t come to this album, or any of Sloan’s studio output for the last ten years, expecting something radically different from what came before; this is just more of the goods.

The Double Cross was released on May 10 through Yep Roc Records (in Canada, it will be available from Outside Music Label). Please visit the band’s website for details, including a slew of upcoming tour dates.