Sainthood is my first real listen to Tegan and Sara. The Canadian twins have been around for a while now but for whatever reason I’ve just never really listened to them until now. And after the first couple listens of this album, I‘ve become completely hooked. Sainthood is easily the best pop-rock album released this year. The songs are equal parts smart, catchy, sweet and playful – even when the subjects aren’t. The twin’s voices (and great harmonies) bounce and soar from course to chorus giving an extra bit of life to the already head-bop inducing tracks. The bottom line is that these Canadians know how to write really good, really accessible, really engaging songs. While the later half of the album leans more to the pop than the rock, the album never strays from its upbeat tempo. Sainthood contains no ballads and no songs that drag down the album’s pace. It’s a short album, coming in under 37 minutes, but don’t mistake that for the lack of content. The 13 songs collected here move and shake with mastery. The strongest tracks on here are the opener, “Arrow,” the first single, “Hell,” and “The Ocean.” The rest of the songs are still very good and I would be hard pressed to list any that are not worth downloading. It’s a shame this album came out so late in the year as this album would be perfect for a Summer of parties and driving down the coast (Northwest of course – sorry everyone else but the Northwest is the best coast) with the top down of a rented convertible. |
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