Minimal Pop Fits Me Divinely

Divine Fits | A Thing Called Divine Fits

What do you get when you take the lead singer songwiters from two very distinctive bands and put them together? You might expect an ego clash, or an alternating set of styles reminiscent of the back and forth of Husker Du’s Candy Apple Grey. In the case of Divine Fits, a new “super group” (don’t you hate that term?) that features Brit Daniel (Spoon) and Dan Boeckner (Handsome Furs and Wolf Parade), the result is more of a blending of the best elements from each other’s songwriting and vocal styles.

The duo, along with drummer Sam Brown (New Bomb Turks) have a created an album that stands up well alongside their previous bands’ output, and manages the neat trick of actually sounding better that one would expect. The simple song structures and minimal production work so well that I’m in danger of over-playing this record. Album opener “My Love is Real” is consistently my favorite song on the album, though I normally don’t fall for such basic rock tropes, though the response of “until it stops” gives it the edge it needs to rise above similar songs.

Competing egos seem to have been left at the door – you can almost hear the fellow songwriters admiring each other’s work while they strive to tastefuly embellish it musically. Dan Boeckner’s electronics and synths add pleasant textures to Brit Daniel’s sparse pop songs, and Daniel’s steady hand and driving guitar and bass bring a head-bobbing urgency to Boeckner’s emotive numbers.

Both singers are known for their very distinctive vocal styles that sometimes border on the edge of sounding a little too AM/FM-friendly, but they make it work, their self-awareness keeping things in check. When the volume is up, you might find yourself singing along. In fact, this record sounds great played loudly in the car — not “10″, but a great summer album for the Fall.

Smells Like: ★★★★★★★★★★