Sunset Rubdown

Random Spirit Lover

[2.5/5]

At this point, Wolf Parade are such widely renowned critical darlings that keyboardist/vocalist Spencer Krug basically can do anything and people will be interested. However, with Sunset Rubdown’s third full-length, Random Spirit Lover, Krug tests the patience of even the most tolerant listener via a convoluted and self-indulgent mess of music that occasionally-and seemingly accidentally-stumbles across moments of brilliance. Unfortunately, for every sublime section (such as the lute-toting breakdown on “The Taming Of The Hands That Came Back To Life”), there’s an inexplicable sonic non sequitur like “Setting Vs. Rising,” which teams Krug’s idiosyncratic vocals with minimalist piano-plinking and oversaturated effects. Ultimately, it seems as if the songs on Random Spirit Lover were too avant-garde for the next Wolf Parade disc-and while it’s nice that they’re available, you might want to hold out for that new album instead. (JAGJAGUWAR) Jonah Bayer