Rock Plaza Central — Are We Not Horses

"Be joyful, my children, be joyful!" Rock Plaza Central lead singer Chris Eaton crows on the third track of Are We Not Horses. It's impossible not to oblige him. The songs on his band's debut are filled with a reckless joy and a sense of epic, anthemic grandeur that co-exist with a spare, hollow sense of desolation and sadness. It's like Jon-Rae And The River with fewer rough edges, or Broken Social Scene with a twang. This is a concept album that, on a literal level, follows the travels and musings of a band of robotic horses. This could be construed as a study in identity and otherness. Aching with a need to belong, the characters in Eaton's songs question themselves and their uncertain place in the world. It's like a William Gibson novel with a folk soundtrack. Filled with horns, strings and even touches of gypsy klezmer, Are We Not Horses is a true mixed bag. The songs manage to stand alone while serving as pieces of a fascinating whole.