Saint Alvia

Between The Lines

[3.5/5]

Burlington, Ontario’s Saint Alvia were going by the easier-to-misspell “the Saint Alvia Cartel” when they started turning heads with some MySpace demos two years ago. One well-received self-titled debut later, the band are back with the ambitious Between The Lines, an unabashed homage to old-school hip-hop, ’50s doo-wop and lots (lots, lots) of London Calling. Where their 2007 debut captured a band just beginning to learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses, Between The Lines is the sound of six guys who have spent enough time in a van together to get their shit figured out, balancing three distinct vocalists and the songwriting abilities of a whole band. Genre-wise, Lines is all over the map, but the band’s distinct swagger holds things together, from Transplants-style opener “Walk Before You Run DMC,” to the upbeat reggae of “Are You Serious?” right on through to the dirty waltz of “Mornings In Feng Tu.” (STOMP) Sam Sutherland