You Say Party! We Say Die! - XXXX ing catchy

"...my heart needs a lap dance...your heart needs a romance...my heart needs a lap dance..."

Abbotsford-based You Say Party! We Say Die! has released quite the sparkling gem with their latest, XXXX. There was an immense amount of hype prior to and following their release, which includes being the X3 Artist of the Month for October, as well as the glowing reception of music bloggers such as Amanda Ash, and being featured prominently in CBC Radio 3's recordings of the just-passed Halifax Pop Explosion. Oh, and the fact that they've topped Canadian campus charts for 4 weeks in a row since XXXX's release.

And let me tell you, the hype is well-deserved. XXXX is an album you can at once chill and frantically dance to. The sound is expansive and it's easy to imagine tracks such as "Lonely's Lunch" driving audiences to a frenzy in stadium settings. "Make XXXX" has a wicked bass intro. "Glory" packs a satisfying oomph ("sex! (gasp) drugs! (pause) ... GLORY..."), and the opening track "There is XXXX (Within My Heart)" is one you can't help but sing along to, even upon the first listen. The current single, "Laura Palmer's Prom," dare I say, takes the best parts of '80s synth sound and makes it even better. The album, simply put, is excellent.

By now, you may be wondering what the heck XXXX stands for. Simply put, it stands for LOVE. But it goes further than that. XXXX is lead singer Becky Ninkovic's conceptualization of a hope and love that keeps her afloat. The unnameable force that inspires continually. And after repeated listens through the entire disc, XXXX might as well stand for the kind of magic within music that captures first-time listeners and sucks you in, because that's exactly what happened with me with this album.

(Last note, I absolutely love the above photo, and completely understand why Ninkovic was on the final ballot for the Sexiest Musician category for CBC Radio 3's Bucky Awards.)

You Say Party! We Say Die! - There is XXXX (Within My Heart)



Buy XXXX on Zunior.
Find You Say Party! We Say Die! on Myspace, Twitter, Facebook.