After a five-year wait, the follow-up album to the Peppersands' debut is finally upon us, and not a moment too soon. Although the Pepper Sands are easily one of the more respectable modern power-pop songwriting forces Vancouver has to offer, it would seem that they're still shadowed away from the national love they truly deserve, and let's hope the lasting impression of 'Forest Strays' changes that. From the infectious opener "What U Really Need", through "The Lonely Kind" and all the way to the 10th track "Another Lesson" the band - lead by the lovably eccentric heartbreaker Citizen A - shows us all that there's so much life and love and heart left to be found in modern twists on the tried-and-true four-chord pop-rock jackhammer. if CFOX can't get their shit together and trade the crown of Mad King Kroeger for the benevolent tiara of Good Queen Andrea (long may she reign over us), then its obvious that Jay O'Neill has indeed outlived his usefulness and needs a one-way Beaufort Sea cruise on an unheated ice floe. While we're waiting for Jay to succumb to the cruel elements, we can warm ourselves with repeated listenings of 'Forest Strays'. 2007 is turning out to be a very good year for Vancouver releases. -Ferdy Balland, Nerve Magazine June 2007
'Forest Strays' on iTunes hereBuy 'Forest Strays now @ CD Baby...
About Pepper Sands' Self-Titled Debut:
Looks are deceiving. And first impressions don't always hold true. With their spunky black-white-and-red comic book cover art and short, tight, hyperactive tunes, Pepper Sands might give you the impression they're a modern-day new wave group, updating the carefree magic of the Go-Go's. The Vancouver quartet certainly come charging out of the gate with plenty of amped-up frustration and good time kicks.But somewhere in the middle of their debut album, the band that has opened for 54-40, Sleater-Kinney and Matthew Good slow down ever so slightly and begin opening up. The staccato pop bursts of "WIN BIG LOSE MORE (cherries jubilee)" or "Speak Too Soon" give way to the moodier introspection of "Myth," "Touch Apart" and "Make No Mistake." Singer Citizen A layers her vocals in lush echoes and even shuts down to a whisper. Guitarist Jay Slye rolls off the aggressive opening riffs and begins painting the night sky with ringing tones reminiscent of U2's the Edge. Atmosphere adds depth and the lined images on the cover transform into full portraits.The acres of lyrics on the album's insert, taking up literally every panel except the cover, express the views of a band hooked on love and forever trying to figure out a way past the inevitable pain. Except where a less literal band might stick with a few cloying phrases -- and drill an obnoxious, overdone hook into your head -- Pepper Sands opt to tell the story like an interior monologue where the brain must decide what thoughts to keep and which to discard. The effect is sometimes maddening, sometimes endearing, like that late night radio DJ who has had too much caffeine and proceeds to speak in circles through the endless night. You keep thinking you should turn it off and get your own head straight, but you keep wondering where it's all going to end up.In Pepper Sands' case, it adds up to a spirited pop debut that suggests the band is going to get much weirder as time goes on. review from beer.com