The ever-changing sound of Islands is once again evident with their poppiest and most accessible record yet. Long gone are the echoey ghosts of their former incarnation, The Unicorns, replaced this time with practically jubilant songs filled with synths, pianos, horns and some serious head bobbing melodies and beats. Think a way less spazzy, way more cool Hot Hot Heat. There’s just something really clean about the album as it works its way through 12 tracks of true quirky pop music. My favorite track, “Disarming the Car Bomb” includes lyrics like “I uncrossed my arms to disarm the car bomb” and they even employ a sweet talkbox on a track called “Heartbeat.” Definitely up there with some of my favorites from 2009.
