Firstly, a couple of things to make clear. This new band from Toronto are in no way related to Australian new-wave legends The Church, and this album isn't a reworking of, or has any connection to the similarly titled 'Either/Or' by US singer-songwriter Elliot Smith. This particular Church are a Canadian quartet who have just released their debut album 'Either Or', the follow-up to their first EP from 2011. Musically we're not really in the same vicinity as the aforementioned artists either, although Church are a guitar band and at times you could pick out a vague resemblance to the Aussie group, but this is more by chance than by design.
Very much a homemade affair, 'Either Or' was apparently recorded in a garage and a bathroom, and this isn't the only record we've reviewed recently that was recorded in a bathroom, so maybe there's an unusual new trend developing, or maybe the generally echoey acoustics found in such a location work well. Echo does play a part in these eight tracks along with a sharpness that compliments it well. The wonderfully titled 'Liquid Eggs, A Headache And Dirty Hands' is a visceral, modern garage-punk tune and one that sticks out upon first listen, along with the doo-wop by way of grunge that they create on standout 'Brittle And Bare' (and if you're thinking Urge Overkill then you're thinking incorrectly).
The song 'Pissed Jeans' is, presumably, a tribute to the band of the same name, and if you were to describe Church's music in terms of comparisons then, difficult as it may be to imagine, Pissed Jeans meets Los Campesinos! is pretty much what you're looking at. This will of course make more sense when you hear the record. There are glimpses of other scenes, bands and styles to be found; 'How Did I Get This Bored?' uses some neat surf guitar; 'I'm In The Way' comes courtesy of 1991's shoegaze and dreampop scenes; the title-track could fit any number of current North American alt-rock bands; we'll let you decide if they are ripping off anyone in particular on the ace 'Riff Off Of A Better Song'. Church are maybe not at the worship level quite yet, but they're on the right track.
Church's website
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