Handsome Furs In Control

05/29/09 12:35pm

by Scott Bryson (CHARTattack)

Wolf Parade are the kind of band that keep fans in a perpetual state of worry. Admirers and pessimists alike have been predicting the quintet's demise for almost as long as they've been together. Does a group with two ambitious, creative geniuses really stand a chance at longevity?

A break-up would be a less likely possibility if singers/guitarists Spencer Krug and Dan Boeckner weren't both working in critic-beloved side projects. Krug has been making music as Sunset Rubdown since 2005, but his expansion to a full band format and the release of 2006's Shut Up I Am Dreaming set the high water mark for Wolf Parade tangents.

When Boeckner (backed by his wife, Alexei Perry) dropped Handsome Furs' dark and disturbing Plague Park debut in 2007, the battle was on. A mere five months later, like a sophisticated slap to the face with a white glove, Krug and crew released the beguiling Random Spirit Lover.

It was Wolf Parade's turn in the spotlight after that, but Boeckner finally got back to his own side project and crafted a sophomore Handsome Furs album called Face Control. He isn't sure if he one-upped Krug, or even himself, but he expects this disc will be received differently than Plague Park.

"I think people associate happiness in music with the tempo. I've read some preliminary reviews [of Face Control] where people say, 'This record is so much more upbeat than their last record.'

"Yeah, I guess the songs are a little poppier, but... I did really think we were recording a pop record the last time.

"As we were recording this album, I thought, 'Oh, this record is really abrasive and dark.' But now the reviews that are coming out say, 'Oh, they've lightened up.' Maybe it's me. Maybe I don't know anything about the stuff that I make."

The darkness Boeckner sees in his album probably has a lot to do with its source of inspiration. He and Perry originally latched onto the title and its conceptual framework during a tour in Russia, where they witnessed face control first hand at clubs and bars. It's a practice wherein bouncers, security guards (and sometimes armed militia) decide who's going to be allowed inside based on dress, looks and fame.

"We did get into a few clubs where it was going on, after our shows," Boeckner recalls. "We stayed there for quite a while — in Moscow.

"I think it was the day after, or two days after, we were going in at lunchtime — around noon — to this three-level bar... It was like a Moscow-style all-you-can-eat buffet and bar — not very fancy. We got face controlled there by a teenager with a machine gun standing next to a metal detector. Our translator had to convince him that we were really famous. They eventually let us in. I think she had to give him some money."

Life on the road isn't always pleasant, but Boeckner and Perry wouldn't have it any other way. They've already played Face Control dates in every corner of Europe and Asia. Touring, says Boeckner, is both where he finds ideas for records and how the Handsome Furs evolve as a band.

"We recorded Plague Park before playing a lot of live shows and before playing to a larger audience. The more we toured Plague Park, the louder the songs got. For the most part, they were constructed in a very small environment — a very quiet, closed space.

"All of this [Face Control] stuff, we wrote on the road. I think it just naturally evolved into what it is. I've always been a big fan of punk music and figured once Alexei got proficient with the drum machine and we figured out how to make fast, loud rock songs with the set-up that we confined ourselves to, that's what we'd be doing."

"Faster" and "louder" are certainly apt descriptions for Face Control, but the Handsome Furs didn't make a complete 180 with this disc. There's still plenty of darkness in the lyrics, though it's often overshadowed by buoyant rhythm. Compared to Plague Park, Face Control often comes across as a disco dance party.

The metamorphosis was all part of Boeckner's plan, which included a stipulation that he and Perry would keep things as simple as possible.

"The recording was done pretty much off the floor," he says. "Part of starting this band in the first place was that I wanted to start a project that was antithetical to the trend in independent rock music of over-instrumentation, wacky instrumentation or old-timey instruments.

"It kinda goes in waves. I think marimba is really popular now, or vibraphone, and also songs where the instruments are almost like a prop or a special effect. 'Here's the hurdy gurdy!'"

Face control possibilities will exist at these Handsome Furs shows:

May 30 Chicago, IL @ Do-Division Street Festival
June 4 Vancouver, BC @ Richard's On Richards
June 5 Seattle, WA @ Neumo's
June 6 Portland, OR @ The Doug Fir Lounge
June 8 San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
June 9 Visalia, CA @ The Cellar Door
June 10 San Luis Obispo, CA @ Mother's Tavern
June 11 Los Angeles, CA @ Echoplex
June 12 Scottsdale, AZ @ Chyno Arts Center
June 13 Santa Fe, NM @ El Corazon De Santa Fe
June 14 Denver, CO @ The Larimer Lounge
June 17 Fargo, ND @ The Aquarium
July 2 Detroit, MI @ Comerica Cityfest
July 3 Montreal, QC @ Theatre Plaza
July 4 Halifax, NS @ Citadel Hill (Virgin Festival)
July 5 Portland, ME @ SPACE Gallery
July 6 Allston, MA @ Great Scott
July 7 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
July 8 Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall Of Williamsburg
July 9 Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda's
July 10 Washington, DC @ Black Cat
July 11 Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar
July 13 Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506
July 14 Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
July 15 Nashville, TN @ Exit In
July 16 Louisville, KY @ Skull Alley
July 17 Cleveland Heights, OH @ Grog Shop
July 18 Buffalo, NY @ Soundlab
July 19 Ottawa, ON @ LeBreton Flats (Cisco Ottawa Bluesfest)
July 30 Emmaboda, Sweden @ Emmaboda Festival
July 31 Copenhagen, Denmark @ Rust
Aug. 1 Bremen, Germany @ Appletreegarden Festival
Aug. 3 Stuttgart, Germany @ Schocken
Aug. 6 St. Tropez, France @ Plage Du Rock Festival
Aug. 8 Myslowice, Poland @ OFF Festival
Aug. 9 Kutna Hora, Czech Republic @ GASK Artfest 09
Aug. 10 Vienna, Austria @ Szene
Aug. 15 Helsinki, Finland @ Flow Festival