Album Review: Why? - Eskimo Snow

WHY?
ESKIMO SNOW
(Anticon)
www.myspace.com/whyanticon

Tomorrow, Why? will release their latest album, Eskimo Snow, on the hip-hop oriented label Anticon. It's not the first record for the band on the label, despite the fact that the act have their feet firmly planted in the indie rock genre. It may seem like an odd fit, but somehow they simply pull off being out of place so well.

In fact, the band are just off-center enough that it's hard to explain why I like Eskimo Snow. At best, the vocals are reminiscent of They Might Be Giants (just listen to the beginning of "Into the Shadows of My Embrace"), and at worse they sound slightly out of tune, nasal, and awkward. But it's that awkwardness that actually makes it work--it's part of what makes them special and unique. These are the sorts of songs so many other indie rockers try to make, but, unlike many others, Why? actually pull them off successfully.

This is another gem from a great band. It's a struggle to find any fault with this record. Perhaps the only thing I can think of is that there is no real stand-out track--it's all simply great.

MP3: Why? - "This Blackest Purse"