Continuing Friendly Fire Records' somewhat belated catch-up on the prodigious output of Swedish indie poppers
David & the Citizens,
Until the Sadness Is Gone is a big step up from the somewhat spotty self-titled EP. (Two songs from that EP, "Graycoated Morning" and the winsome, jangly "Let's Not Fall Apart," are repeated here to no ill effect.) The band's obvious points of comparison are still valid, particularly late-era Elephant 6 bands like
Of Montreal or
Elf Power. Briskly strummed acoustic guitars, rat-a-tat drumming, and a smartly deployed horn section are the key elements in the arrangements, giving the album the crispness and urgency familiar to fans of older Swedish indie acts like
the Wannadies and
Eggstone, but
Until the Sadness Is Gone lacks the airy, occasionally twee quality endemic to some of those bands. (Exhibit A:
the Cardigans.) With his somewhat overstuffed, wordy lyrics and knack for smartly deployed bridges and key shifts, leader
David Fridlund often recalls both
the New Pornographers'
Carl Newman and
the Decemberists'
Colin Meloy, but he's a less distinctive singer and lyricist than either. That said, breathless little indie pop rushes like the rhythmically inventive title track, with its maddeningly catchy bassline hook, and the
Ted Leo-like ska-pop bounce and sarcastic lyrics of "Long Day" are hugely satisfying on their own merits. ~ Stewart Mason