Following Junior Boys' 2004 debut album, Last Exit, band members Jeremy Greenspan and Johnny Dark have successfully avoided a sophomore slump. The 10 songs on So This is Goodbye are more polished and mature than those on their first release. Hearing the album all the way through, however, is like watching pairs skaters who never, ever, fall. The music (think chick-chick-chick [!!!] on sedatives or perhaps The Postal Service with less angst and more bass) comes across as impressive, tight and consistent. Maybe too consistent.
On first listen, it seems like the Junior Boys' drum machine got stuck on one setting; some of the songs' beginnings evoke the musical version of a double take, prompting a "Did I just hear that?" followed by some CD scanning to confirm that yes, perhaps tracks five and seven are not next to each other for a reason.
In general, each song blends into the next, creating an LP which, though flawless in its execution, is not the most memorable.
This is not to say that Greenspan and Dark didn't produce anything noteworthy; "In the Morning," the most remixed and blogged-about song in the release, injects much-needed texture into the middle of the album. Distorted synthesizers cycle in and out of delicately layered loops and an infectious vocal refrain. Listen to this song more than once and you'll probably become addicted to it.
At the very least, you'll find yourself tapping your foot to the synth beat or nodding your head in approval of lead singer Greenspan's insults.
Track two, "The Equalizer," has a few zingers: "Spring time / you're gonna wish that we were friends... / there'll be no more lessons, no more cures / till you get yours, baby / in the end."
If you couldn't tell by the title, So This is Goodbye is, in fact, a breakup album.
The lyrics, however, are not meant to console those with broken hearts. The opener, "Double Shadow," uses a dark melody to house a string of name-calling. But as the album progresses so does the desire for reconciliation. Greenspan admits he's "like a child" in the track by the same name. He begs the object of his affection to "Stay a while / we don't have long / we could talk for hours/ till my strength is gone ... / I think of you and then I know what went wrong / I'm like a child."
More understated tracks gain definition with each listen. "FM," a beautifully sparse track, ends the album with a hint of optimism, repeating "Ooh not another sound / till you say / you're ok."
Greenspan channels Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie, The Postal Service) in "Count Souvenirs" in the way his lyrics set a hauntingly specific scene in front of a chilly electronic backdrop. This is another standout track, though it is similar to a handful of other songs by other artists. This similarity is indicative of the fact that this album is not exploring brand new territory, or even taking the risk of being a little rough around the edges.
There are no back-flips or quadruple axles here. For this pair's smooth routine, the degree of difficulty is less than high. Their performance is enjoyable, but they should be judged accordingly.
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