On Neck of the Woods Silversun Pickups chose to work with producer Jacknife Lee in his Topanga studio.
Photograph by: submitted , for North Shore News
Silversun Pickups - Neck of the Woods (Dangerbird Records) Rating: 8 (out of 10) Over the course of several albums Silversun Pickups have built an original sound that rarely slows down or veers off course.
Neck of the Woods shakes things up a bit dynamically but if youve heard them before youll be familiar with the alternative bands neighbourhood. Most of their songs seem to gain power as they progress with frontman Brian Auberts distinctive breathy vocals an integral part of the mix. Its impossible to mistake their sonic soundscape for anyone elses although Smashing Pumpkins full frontal guitar attack and My Bloody Valentines love of noise have obviously influenced what theyre doing.
On Neck of the Woods the band opted to work with a new producer, Jacknife Lee, and holed themselves up in his Topanga studio for a 10-week stretch to record the album. They came out with almost an hours worth of material and Lee (perhaps best known for his work with Snow Patrol) hasnt so much altered the sound as given them the confidence to keep on experimenting with the component parts. The result is as good as anything theyve done to this point, matching the highs of 2006s Carnavas which represented a major creative statement for the band.
