CD REVIEW: Death or Comber "Death or Comber"

Death or Comber
"Death or Comber" (2009, Independent)
Mixed and Recorded by James Oltean-Lepp
Mastered by John Oleynik

Death or Comber may be a relative newcomer to the Windsor music scene, but by all indications, these guys are going to be the break-out of 2009.

Formed from the ashes of punk faves Majority D, Death or Comber has shown great maturity in their performance and their songwriting, and nowhere is it more evident than on their self-titled debut.

Despite their age, Death or Comber has produced an album that could be considered timeless - it could have come out of the late 80's post-punk scene (that housed bands like Fugazi or Big Black) or from more recent indie offerings like At The Drive-In, but they almost sound more like something from the early 90's, when indie rock bands were stretching the limits of what could be merged from straight ahead pop songs with riskier guitar techniques and more impassioned vocals.

Now don't get me wrong. There's nothing ground breaking on here. There's no crazy guitar experimentation, or prog drum solos, or Buckley-esque vocals present on this record. What it is is simply the sound of four young guys creating a truly enjoyable sound - and James Oltean-Lapp (better known as James O-L with his projects the Famous Last Words and now The Villains) has managed to capture their sound with deft precision. It drips of early Dinosaur Jr., with it's swelling guitars, sometimes veering towards the out of tune but always coming back in line just in time. There's also a feel of other early 90's indie rock pioneers like Built To Spill's There's Nothing Wrong With Love or Shudder to Think's Get Your Goat.

"I'm Awake, You're Awake", a song destined to become their anthem and a live staple, is full of such groovalicious swagger that it almost feels like a cover. It feels so good that it must come from somewhere else - picture if Fugazi wanted to write a dancefloor fillier in 1991. I can honestly say that this track is my stand out favourite for Song of the Year so far. In other moments, they almost reflect hints of Pavement, such as the mostly acoustic "Mighty Erandanus", with its dark overtones and slightly lulling electric guitar compliments.

It's an album that sounds as relevant listening to it first thing in the morning over breakfast as it does cruising in your car or playing drinking games at 2:15 a.m. And maybe it's a testament to how much I miss all those 90's bands (or at least the output they delivered in those early days) that this album has resonnated so closely to my ears, but whatever the reason, Death or Comber have put together a refreshing collection of sounds that pure and simple, don't sound like anything anyone else is doing in Windsor - at least not since 1994.

Death or Comber is playing a free show at The Coach & Horses (156 Chatham St. West, beside Pogo's) TONIGHT with special guests James O-L & The Villains.