It's been along time since you would associat the terms A side and B side when to an album. There's no need to flip a record anymore or turn the tape and so we think of albums as one cohesive idea. But there was a time when a band would take that brief intermission while you ceremonially flipped to side B and switch up the sound or set you off on a completely new musical journey.
I mention this because knowingly or not The Sadies have given a nod to this bygone era with their album Darker Circles.
To wit, tracks 1 through 5 are pure Canadiana, embracing a decidedly 90s alt-country sound that puts me in mind of Blue Rodeo and Prairie Oyster. The songs are rich and deeply emotive and instantly draw you in.
Cut Corners and Another Day Again are instantly memorable, while Tell Here What I Said is a gorgeous love letter to someone long gone.
Meanwhile tracks 6-11 take a decidedly different turn opting for more of a 70s AM Gold feel. The country swagger is still very much present (maybe more than I would have liked) but now tinged with a little honky-tonk and that warm glow of the 70s . Gordon Lightfoot would be proud.
For some this stark contrast in style could be seen as jarring or even off-putting and they'd have a case. This sometimes feels like two albums almost at odds with each other. Some will embrace the throw-back country twang of side B while others will see it as a confusing and unanticipated left turn. Count me in that second group.
But at the end of the day that doesn't matter because it's clear The Sadies made exactly the album they wanted to, split personality and all. A fully complete Side A and Side B.
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