Bishop Allen — Grrr...

Grrr...

Dead Oceans/Sonic Unyon

Chris Burland (CHARTattack)

03/10/2009 1:37pm

Some music snobs are gnashing their teeth because the runaway success of Vampire Weekend has meant a pile of other smart, fun pop bands have since been let off their leash. These folks need to lighten up. With the world's economy seemingly grinding to a halt, we all need some intelligent frivolity to lose ourselves in.

Enter Bishop Allen. On Grrr..., the Brooklyn-based duo of Justin Rice and Christian Rudder and their revolving cast of supporting characters really play with the genre, incorporating exotic instruments like the vibraphone, which dominates "The Lion & The Teacup," and injecting cheesy lines like "Ollie, Ollie Ox In Free" on opening track, "Dimmer." It's pure fun.

It's obvious the duo have major man-crushes on a few quirky singer/songwriters, including Jonathan Richman ("Shanghaied"), Ray Davies ("Oklahoma") and the two Johns from They Might Be Giants ("Rooftop Brawl").

While Rice and Rudder contribute the bulk of the sounds on this recording, the pair (who are also accomplished actors) turn to friend and album designer Darbie Nowatka to provide lead vocals on "True Or False." The best track is "The Ancient Commonsense Of Things," which channels Stephen Malkmus covering some lost Chills track.

Get it from