Release Date: Feb 28, 2012
Genre(s): Country, Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Alternative Pop/Rock
Record label: Paper Bag Records
Music Critic Score
How the Music Critic Score works
This Canadian folk/punk trio is known for the intensity of their stage shows and raucous energy. On Days Into Years, their playing still has a burning emotional intensity, but the tempos are measured and the songs are packed with images of mortality, aging, and the emotional cost of war. The album was inspired by a side trip the band took on their last European tour.
Elliott Brood's new album marks a departure for the Toronto trio, who've moved to Paper Bag Records and ditched their raucous, stomping, death-country shtick in favour of a fuller Canrock sound complete with drums, piano, backup vocals and lots of electric guitar. The new textures suit singer Mark Sasso's gravelly voice and Days Into Years' historical themes, inspired in part by a visit to a World War I cemetery in France. A nuanced rocker, the album moves between big distorted jams, soundscapey interludes and quieter banjo songs.
When Toronto, ON trio Elliott Brood burst onto the scene in 2004, they grabbed ears with a strikingly sparse yet intense sound. On Days Into Years, it is the quality of the songwriting that takes centre stage. The group's sound has broadened and mellowed on their third full-length album, but all in the service of melodically and lyrically rich material.