Kevin Drew – Spirit If…

When it comes to BSS fanboys, there are few as intensely unabashed as yours truly. Well, that is perhaps not true; there are a lot of goddamn BSS fanboys out there. So take this for what it’s worth:

I’ve been in bands before, and I know that we were lucky if we could get the drummer to stop dicking around long enough to play four consecutive bars of something that even slightly resembled what we were trying to play; and a doctorate thesis can be, and probably has been, written about the delicate psychology involved in convincing a rhythm guitarist that face melting finger tap solos are sometimes not appropriate. Or at least not appropriate all the time. So it is and always will be: the trials and tribulations of the aspiring 4-piece.

So for Broken Social Scene to pull together 237 musicians {{citation needed}} and make anything beyond incoherent ruckus, much less (arguably?) flawless music, is no small feat.

I think my point, though I’m much less certain now then when I began writing, is that this sense of shear improbability, the singularity from chaos, is what makes BSS so fascinating for me. And I think the lack of this sense is why I was so disappointed in Spirit If… initially.

Yes, I am aware that there were so many contributors to the album that it more closely resembles a marching band’s halftime performance than a solo record. Nevertheless, it is Kevin Drew’s project, solo or not, and although it may not be fair to compare it to a BSS album, the comparison is unavoidable. The result? It feels like it’s missing the influence of about 236 people.

Only after I was able to look beyond what was probably, to be honest, a subconscious thirst for new BSS did I realized Spirit If… is actually a fantastic record. It is somewhat hit and miss, but when he hits (i.e. Gang Bang Suicide) there is no questioning that Kevin deserves credit for garnering at least his proportionate share of the fanboydom.

If nothing else, Spirit If… is a wonderfully detailed magnification of one small section of the mosaic that is BSS.

Download:
Kevin Drew – Gang Bang Suicide

Then buy from:
Amazon.com or Emusic.com