"I'm gonna dance my face off tonight..."

I've made no secret of the fact that Barrie's Fox Jaws are one of my favourite bands. Their 2007 debut Goodbye Doris is one of my most listened to albums of the decade, and their recent signing with Nevado Records had me filled with great expectations. As soon as the album opens with Migrating Deer, my first expectation is immediately filled as the production quality is significantly cleaner, although they admirably stay away from placing too much sheen on their sound, which would have been inappropriate to the band's affable rawness. Throughout the course of the album's 50 minute length, the band shows their willingness to keep things progressively expanding as they avoid committing the all too familiar sophomore repeat. At Odds is a mildly experimental album that shuffles across a few different styles, although that magic coupling of pop sensibility and Carleigh Aikins' wicked awesome voice remains at the album's core. One of the most noticeable changes made on this album is the fact that the vocals are split equally between Carleigh and Daniel Allen. This creates another level of sound that revels due to the fact that their voices contain an incredible uniqueness that makes them stand apart from others. There are still some solid high energy rock songs like Youth Dance and Home and Native, the latter of which contains the most effective laughing chorus since Morrissey's We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successfull. There are some epic moments like Drinking Fountains and album closer The Enabler which makes good use of the build-up effect. But it's those experimental pieces that really impress, like Ahab's Ghost and I Am An Army, where the combination of distorted vocals, massive guitar sounds and intense drumming makes for a sonic experience that bears repeating. They even manage to accomplish the impossible with Himmelfarb by creating what I would describe as an experimental pop song that you can totally dance to.

With At Odds, Fox Jaws have created another masterpiece that has managed to keep the band in my personal faves list for another couple of years at least. If they continue to expand their musical palate the way that they have this time around, they'll likely grow to be one of my favourite acts ever.