Deriving its band name from televangelist Jimmy Swaggart’s 1996 book “Music: The New Pornography,” The New Pornographers, a seven-member Canadian supergroup that features Carl Newman of Zumpano, Dan Bejar of Destroyer and country singer-songwriter Neko Case, has always excelled at writing radiant, upbeat, Britpop-tinged music.
On songs like the title track and “Letter from an Occupant” from its stellar 2000 debut Mass Romantic, the band created the perfect balance of infectiousness and harmony. Its newest release, Electric Version, maintains the band’s brilliance at writing pop songs while demonstrating a greater maturity.
In many ways, the structure of Mass Romantic and Electric Version are quite similar; both albums revolve around a few exceptionally strong, strategically placed tracks. Electric’s title track opens the record with a steady drum beat and oscillating guitar solo before Bejar sings, “The sound of tires is the sound of God / New electric version.” A few moments later, Case and Newman cheerfully join him in the chorus singing, “Streaming out of the blinding sun.”
Clearly The Pornographers aren’t the first band to write a song about driving a car. Sammy Hagar did it first. But there was no magic behind “I Can’t Drive 55” — even in his Van Halen days, Hagar could never write a song this good.
Electric’s third song, the Beach Boys-inspired “The Laws Have Changed,” continues the superb musicality of the title track. Case sings the chorus using her signature country-influenced twang. In the background, a resoundingly catchy series of “na-na-nas,” “doo-doo-doos” and a staccato keyboard play in endless loops. The song epitomizes the inherently infectious nature of The Pornographers’ songs: upbeat, brilliant and enthralling.
At the same time, some songs show The Pornographers breaking new ground. The band’s creativity pervades the last few tracks of Electric Version; these tracks are quite easily the best songs on the new record. Notably “It’s Only Divine Right” — the catchiest song on the record, by far — features a grinding guitar riff and an oscillating keyboard line that, together, drive the song rhythmically. Toward the end of the song, after Newman and Bejar sing the chorus, the band breaks out into a playful, rocking, 40-second long jam session, replete with distortion pedals and squealing guitars. It makes the song perfect in every way possible.
That said, Electric Version isn’t without its flaws. On a very basic level, The Pornographers’ songwriting suffers from a lack of diversity.
Granted, this is feel-good music. But even in the poppiest of pop music, there is always some room for maneuver, which, sadly, makes certain songs on Electric Version appear formulaic in structure.
Coincidentally, these songs are also the weakest lyrically. “Chump Change” begins with Bejar singing bizarrely, “Stole a page from your book / And a line from your page / And flew into a lesbian rage.” Sure he did. Unfortunately, even the repetitive guitar riff sounds recycled, draining the song of its vitality.
But even the bad songs on a New Pornographers record are listenable, if not addictive. Electric Version may not exhibit the same vitality and creativity of Mass Romantic, but the record stands solidly as the work of a talented band capable of reflecting pop brilliance.
