The Darcys

This is Toronto, ON art-rockers the Darcys third full-length in as many years, with the trilogy coming to its conclusion with Warring. Branching out from the shoegaze of their self-titled release and their rocking interpretation of Steely Dan's Aja, this album finds the band playing with myriad sounds. Rife with hooks and dense textures, they prove their willingness to run the gamut of ideas, with each song covering diverse territory, including the slow-burning panic of opener "Close To Me," the shifting guitar rock on "Hunting" and the danceable "Pretty Girls." While Warring's pacing is brought to a jarring halt midway through with piano ballad "The Pacific Theatre," it rebounds, with that track providing a great introduction to the album's back end. The final five numbers are sonically diverse, but similar, in that they're all are well sculpted. Special attention must be paid to the rocking "747s," driven by lead singer Jason Couse's strong, soaring voice. The collection shows a definite progression from the first two parts of the trilogy, finding the Darcys in a more experimental space, spreading their proverbial wings, to definite success.