The Hard Quartet would like you to know that this is not a project, it’s a band. But what kind of band? When your membership comprises Jim White (Dirty Three, Xylouris White) on drums and Matt Sweeney (Chavez, Superwolf), Stephen Malkmus (Pavement, Jicks) and Emmett Kelly (Cairo Gang, Bonnie “Prince” Billy) swapping guitars and bass, it’s awfully hard not to reach for the S-word. But most supergroups are projects, short-lived and prone to disappointment. Only time will tell if this one’s built to last, but the good-natured vibes that the Hard Quartet exudes augur well for ongoing mutual tolerance as well as onstage entertainment. And the fact that everyone sings suggests that collegiality, not competition, is the word stamped across the top of their interpersonal road map.
So, what pulls these guys together? Shared fandom is probably the sharpest tug; across this album’s 15 songs, you’ll hear echoes not only of their own projects, but a list of recording artists who have straddled the good-taste/tastes-good divide including Big Star, the Raspberries, Richard Thompson, Buzzcocks, Tall Dwarfs, glam-era Bowie, “Ditch Trilogy” Neil Young and ’70s Kinks. But they don’t just flex references, they fold them into working songs that’ll snag you by the ear and pull you out to the car for a highway sing-along. But beware; if you get pulled over for speeding while hollering “Action For Military Boys,” no one’s paying your speeding ticket but you. [Matador]
—Bill Meyer
