SONIC AVENUES

Dirtnap Records released the Exploding Hearts' classic LP Guitar Romantic back in 2003. Eleven years later, they're still offering exciting power pop. Montreal's Sonic Avenues prove that quickly with "In Your Head" (off Mistakes, which is out April 15). The track finds its footing with some initial kinetic-but-acoustic guitar work, and from there, they springboard into rafter-reaching electric solo territory. By the time it picks up with handclaps, Max Desharnais' nasal vocals come in with some full-throated multi-tracked harmonies, and right as the chorus ends, he screams "GO!". It's got all the ingredients to keep Dirtnap's power pop stable as vital as it ever was. - Evan Minsker

Is it punk? Is it pop? Mistakes, the third album from Montreal foursome Sonic Avenues, has enough melodic hooks and massed harmonies that many of the tracks would fit like a glove on one of the Poptopia! compilations, while the big guitars, pounding drums, speedy tempos, and bellow-along choruses will warm the heart of anyone who digs their punk old-school. So what is it? Let's just say it's rock & roll, and it's a blast: if this band sounded promising on their first two long-players, with Mistakes Sonic Avenues have made an album as joyously exciting as anything likely to cross your path, wildly enthusiastic like a room full of eight year olds fed all the cake they want and as canny about what makes a great song as anyone with an office in the Brill Building. Part of the kick of Mistakes is the sheer precision and impact of this band -- guitarists Max Desharnais and Seb Godin make their twin axes sound like an army in these sessions, while drummer JC Niquet is a dynamo with taste and swing to spare, bassist Chance Hutchison adds both punch and a solid bottom end to the arrangements, and Desharnais' vocals lead the charge beautifully when the group raise their voices as one. Songs like "Automatic," "Tired, Bored and Alone," and "In Your Head" don't really tell us that much new about life among the teens and twenties, but through sheer force and belief they make them sound powerful and relevant, as real as what happened to you this afternoon and even more exciting. Sonic Avenues have mixed the raw and the hooky as well as anyone working along these lines, and if it's a little early in their career to start declaring masterpieces, there are literally hundreds of bands that would be proud to deliver an album that connects with the fervent impact of Mistakes. If you still believe in rock & roll, you should give this a listen at your soonest convenience. - Mark Deming

Another day, another hit from Dirtnap Records. Really, the story should be that Sonic Avenues continue to impress me with their walk between power pop and pop punk, similar to the work of label mates Mind Spiders. That being said, there’s always a shinier side in their tracks, but the breakdown in the middle of this tune feels more sinister, so perhaps their new effort, Disconnector, will have the band expanding on their near-perfect sound. Turn it up loud, listen to the anthemic chorus, and get yourself to the record store on October 7th. - Nathan Lankford

Change is a nightmare for anyone. Particularly when you’ve got a good thing going. Montreal, Quebec’s razor-sharp pop darlings Sonic Avenues set standards impossibly high with 2009’s near-flawless self-titled debut: a set of glittery, sprawling nuggets hearkening a Celibate Rifles-era Australian proto-punk heyday, the crème of the 90s Lookout crop, and a clear nod to the recent power-pop resurgence. The well-received follow-up Television Youth, the band’s first for Portland’s Dirtnap Records, continued in a very similar vein, showcasing a remarkable knack for pop composition, yet rarely veering from the path laid out three years prior.

Shortly after Television Youth’s completion, bassist Jamie Desjardins amicably left the group to fulfill career aspirations, leaving the door open for perfect fit Chance Hutchison, a natural musician and performer whose influence shines throughout Sonic Avenues’ vital, mature third long-player, Mistakes.

“Automatic,” one of the album’s many highlights, and the logical choice for a debut single, is a succinct summation of Mistakes’ lyrical and sonic content: a quick, hook-laden refusal to rest on one’s laurels; a flagrant fist-in-the-face of the “if it ain’t broke…” mentality. The result is Sonic Avenues’ most fully-realized and accomplished work to date—proof that a willingness to evolve, and knowing when it’s time to, is crucial to any artist’s maintained relevance and longevity.

We talked to Chance and guitarist Max Desharnais. Check out the interview and listen to "Automatic" below. (It's less than two minutes long though, so read fast!) - Dave Williams