Do You Like Boris?

Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin should be quite of a political band. Cause a scene, protest in front of the White House, ask for the demolition of Wall Street, things like these. But SSLYBY’s area of interest seemed to be a bit different: girls and their lips, love’s sweet torments and the pains of the heart. Five years on from their breezy self-released debut Broom and two after the exquisite Pershing, the Russian president’s fans return with an album that seems to follow the lines of the band’s previous recordings but takes it a step further.

Let It Sway is like a soft spring breeze, the sun on an April morning: handclaps gently tickle the hazy guitars and rapid drums while the seemingly dissonant voice wraps itself around your heart. There is also plenty of immersion into mid-90s American alternative: the excellent Banned (By The Man) and the semi-schizoid part mellow loveliness part blasting guitars and echo-y vocals Back In The Saddle are not just mere tracks, but a fully fledged time machines. And there are two-tone hints like the bass lines on In Pairs or jumping drums of My Terrible Personality or punk-meets-Americana outburst like the potentially concert favourite Critical Drain.

There are, as a matter of fact, many notes, chords and keys SSLYBY take from the past and glue them so closely together it’s hard to figure out where you’ve heard it before. Fortunately, songs like the bubbly Evelyn or the piano-kissed (future-Michael-Cera-movie-title) Stuart Gets Lost Dans Le Metro are moments when the glue is made of sheer and utter brilliance. Unfortunately, there are times when the four piece fails to create something remarkable. No, by no means is any of their songs sonically disturbing. Just that, on a first listen the likes of Animalkind say almost nothing to the listener and gently slip from the memory as the last notes of the songs are played.

But as proof SSLYBY are worthy of the indie front lines, the moments when the album drags seem too short and are easy to ignore. No need to fret, no need to despair. Those flaws exist to remind us SSLYBY are only human and they too can err. After all, it would be awfully depressing to listen to an album that has only airwave perfection like Cardinal Rules, wouldn’t it?