This article was originally published on beingtheremag.com, an independent music and film magazine that ran from 2004 to 2007. It is presented here as part of the Being There Magazine archive.
By Adam Anklewicz | Being There Magazine, January/February 2006
Artist: The Meligrove Band | Label: V2 Records
When bassist Michael Small spoke with Being There for our September 2005 issue and was asked to describe his band, he used the words “better than a face infection.” Not the greatest endorsement, but apt to the self-deprecating humour of Toronto’s Meligrove Band.
The Meligrove Band’s third release, Planets Conspire, is also their major label debut. It was recorded with By Divine Right’s José Contreras long before The Meligrove Band had found a label to release their new sounds. Though some might fear influence from V2, the record isn’t filled with commercial tunes that are sometimes forced out of a band to appease a label. The Meligrove Band creates some great pop tunes, but it’s not something that will find itself too comfortable on radio. At long last, The Meligrove Band and their songs have their own identity. After years of endless comparisons to legendary Canadian rockers Sloan, The Meligrove Band have truly come into their own.
Jason Nunes crafts some great addictive pop tunes like “Everyone’s A Winner” and “Our Love Will Make The World Go Round.” These songs have catchy choruses, such as “dadada dadadadada” from the former, and “Our love will make the world go round/your love will make the world go round” in the latter. Though they’re quite catchy, they don’t fit in with what is being played on radio. These eleven songs sit uncomfortably between the programming found on commercial radio and college radio and will have to find their separate lives though alternative media.
Planets Conspire is very full and lush thanks to fellow bandmates Darcy Rego (drums), Andrew Scott (multi-instrumentalist) and Michael Small (bass) adding to Nunes’ songwriting. This foursome provides a great canvas for a major label debut and the big sound will surprise most when they learn that it was mostly recorded at home. Almost all of The Bicycles and various other guest musicians joined them to fill out this album.
The record’s biggest drawback is that all of the songs sound the same. The songs are so closely knit together and sequenced so very well, that it’s hard to isolate songs from the record as individuals. After half-a-dozen listens to this record, and three live performances of these songs, it’s hard to remember what “I’m Easy” sounds like until the CD plays that track. Even one of the catchier songs “Ages & Stages” flows so well into its follow-up that it’s hard to separate the two.
Jason Nunes’ vocals are so heavily processed on this album that it’s hard to listen to his distorted vocals through the length of the album. His screaming/singing voice doesn’t help much to alleviate the problem and perhaps it was an artistic decision that didn’t quite work.
Planets Conspire’s eleven songs do get The Meligrove Band off to a good start with a major label. Let’s hope the band is championed by V2 and don’t get lost in the shuffle.