At Mount Zoomer

Of all the 2000s' indie-rockers, Wolf Parade have perhaps been most adept at standing alone despite an obvious kinship with contemporaries such as Islands and splitting personalities with its own side projects like Sunset Rubdown. An unusual record, AT MOUNT ZOOMER grasps at the straws of classic canonical influences without really bowing at their altar in its attempt to spin a sophisticated pop gem. "California Dreamer" in particular is a bizarre little nugget, with Spencer Krug playing his keyboard like Ray Manzarek on a song that sounds like a bent Christine McVie number for TUSK-era Fleetwood Mac. Elsewhere, "Language City" sounds as close to pure pop as anything from the Pac Northwest indie revival in the post-Shins era. Born primarily from cut-and-paste jams recorded in a church, ZOOMER is remarkably cohesive for having been conceptualized in largely free-form fashion. And while it might resemble any number of bright and bristling genre-starters before it, this feels like a record that will be a hallmark for the way it leaves the listener thrilled and moved.