Never Hear the End of It

iTunes Review

A formidable pop force in their Canadian homeland, Nova Scotia’s Sloan have been relegated to cult status elsewhere. Their ‘60s flavored retro-pop and early ‘70s AM radio hooks make their every release feel like a trip into an alternate musical library where the likes of the Beatles, Badfinger, Eric Carmen and the Raspberries have been recast as modern rockers. Never Hear the End of It is a sprawling 30(!) track album that amazingly never wears out its welcome – though the sheer abundance is inevitably overwhelming. The tracks come charging out of the gate with tight harmonies, enthusiastic handclaps, hastily strummed guitars and a myriad of keyboards. If you weren’t told otherwise, you might think this was a collection of singles spanning their entire career. While there are minor tracks that serve as segues to other tracks (“Something’s Wrong”), overall these are well thought out compositions that playfully twist their influences into new configurations (hear the “Tomorrow Never Knows” drumbeat behind “Golden Eyes”). Traces of garage rock (“Ana Lucia”), the Beach Boys and Hollies (“I Understand”) the ‘60s Brit Invasion (“Will I Belong”) and ’70s new wave-punk rock (“HFXNSHC”) abound.