With their début full-length, Canadians Distances demonstrate what happens when you’ve got heaps of musical talent and tightness but a dearth of compelling tunes.
There are flashes of brilliance – first ‘proper’ song Apprehensive has intricate riffs and harmonies galore, and along with songs like Tangled Feet showcases a compelling, Off With Their Heads-style combination of upbeat pop-punk musical arrangement and gruff, rough-hewn vocals. With a few notable exceptions, though, the album is punk-rock-by-numbers; there’s a strange paradox whereby when Distances stray into less formulaic territory – such as on Underwhelmed, the more intriguing musical direction is offset by some dirgey, almost melody-free vocals.
That’s not to say that Peaks/Valley is a bad album by any stretch, but its inconsistency means it’s certainly a frustrating one. For every legitimate banger like Faux Real (top marks for the pun guys, excellent work) there’s a generic, atonal Like Father, Like Son.
If Distances build on the solid foundation laid here they could become a very interesting prospect indeed – consider the genre-defining step up taken by Brand New between Your Favorite Weapon and Deja Entendu – but for now, they join the swelling ranks of ‘promising’ acts. Whether they’re able to deliver on that promise remains to be seen.
ROB BARBOUR