This band has been around nearly 18 years. That’s crazy. And the sound has evolved that entire span. Where Ivy have ended up today is in a fierce battlezone for my attention and affection. It added up to being a Top 10 album for me in 2011, and I’m remiss in finally reviewing it now. Don’t release albums in November!
Remember Big Audio Dynamite? Put Dominique Durand in front and you’ve got an idea. Bush 41-era dance beats on top of upbeat modern rock on tracks such as “Distant Lights” give you the latest incarnation of Ivy, and I adore it to pieces.
“How’s Never” has a Britpop sounds that’s, well, quick, painless, and easy. “World Without You” is more electronic, the way New Order used to do it. And it’s not too much of a stretch to hear Durand channeling Bernard Sumner a bit here.
An acoustic piano/guitar sendup provides the perfect background for “I Still Want You.” Maybe it is the song you would expect a band like this to do, but that doesn’t make it any less appropriate. When Londonbeat turned the synths off, they could do this sound as well.
If you miss Ivy’s ’90s sound, “Lost in the Sun” throws you a bone. Yes, I miss it, too. The last track is “The Conversation,” and I’ll have one with anyone that wants one. It’s so nice to have Ivy back after all these years.
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