July 9th, 2006
Review: Metric - Live It Out
METRIC
Live it Out
***
If Manchester was the musical Mecca of the late 80s, Toronto is the noughties, anti-baggy equivalent. After Stars and Broken Social Scene, come Metric, whose singer Emily Haynes light up the latter’s ‘Swimmers’ with her sultry lilt. Their second album opens disarmingly with ‘Empty’, all quiet guitars and brushed drums before it explodes in to pop-rock stomp. ‘Poster of a Girl’, with its eerie intro is filled with French mutterings and the kind of cynical commentary that runs all through the album. ‘Handshakes’, with its siren guitars sums up Metric’s MO - indie rock with a dash of electro. Sound familiar? Yes, but they’re separated from de rigour contemporaries by Haines’ voice, which is sweet and anarchic at the same time. Fans mourning the recently departed Sleater Kinney should find solace in Live it Out.
Links: www.ilovemetric.com