Review: Papertrigger - Riot Lovers

Label: self-released

Released: 2007

Papertrigger's Riot Lovers EP is an odd pop record that does more than just dabble in cabaret music. It is dense and often organ-dominated with jazzy rhythms and a dark, seedy undercurrent. While they play it loose and perhaps even a bit sloppy, the album shows their innate sense of being a band instead of a group of musicians operating independently. They do tighten up a bit at times, but even the fuzzy, psychedelic guitar breaks of "Fox Hunting" don't stray outside of the album's musical motif. Any bits of polish don't constrain the album's random feel either. They are in particularly fine form as the dragging rhythms of "The Inner Party" pull on the crescendo that tries to soar as the song draws to a close. It is this tension that makes the music so vivid. As if the album wasn't a peculiar enough affair, they close with a quiet piano piece whose false ending segues into a hidden track. That little bonus sounds as though it could be straight out of a documentary about deep space. It's an finale that is about as open-ended as they come.

In a way, Riot Lovers has the same spirit as the Doors' version of "Alabama Song." Papertrigger takes a very un-rock style and make it rock in their own way, not by making it loud or throwing guitars at it, but by shaking up its core with their own quirky point-of-view.

Rating: 8/10

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