Sunparlour Players — Hymns For The Happy

Toronto-based trio Sunparlour Players self-released Hymns nearly a year ago, but by no means is it the same record as this, their first proper label issue. While retaining the same gruff edges that make the Players so entrancing to watch live, revamped arrangements have added a smack of shine and made Hymns more expansive. The Players' gut-bucket country twang is seated in an old school rock aesthetic. Though sometimes mired in that same rock ethos ("Dyin' Today"), the band excel on "If The Creeks Don't Rise," a stunning elegy of a farmer's tenuous relationship with his land. Andrew Penner's ability to effortlessly shift from a menacing growl to a lilting, but roughed-up tenor seeps into every crack and crevice on the LP and is the natural adjunct to the textured instrumentation. Hymns is a riveting collection of country punk that just about approximates their raucous shows. 

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