The Fine Arts Showcase
Gustaf Kjellvander presents...
Startracks
This is one heckuva big pop record. Everything about it is huge: the production, the hooks, the songs. We're talking full-on indie arena rock, akin to bands like Guided by Voices or maybe the Flaming Lips. There's all sorts of quirky instrumentation too, from the North African woodwinds the ghaita and arghul, to electric cicada sounds, theramin, bowed satellite dish and tons more. This is a fun, sugary-sweet album and I like it a lot, but just like candy, it's best enjoyed in small doses. After having it on constant rotation for a couple days in a row, I grew sick of it and had to put it away for a week or so. I don't want to get a cavity, y'know.
- Avi Roig