Montreal trio Plants and Animals follow up their well-received debut Parc Avenue with La La Land. Their second album on Secret City, La La Land takes on West Coast pop culture with songs called “Tom Cruz,” “American Idol,” “The Mama Papa” and “Jeans Jeans Jeans.” Plants and Animals are difficult to corner into one genre. Their music references 70’s rock, folk, country and prog, and frankly, La La Land does not lean strongly in any of those directions. The overall sound on the album is vague and elusive, and while “The Mama Papa” has an 80’s vibe that doesn’t quite fit in with the rest of the album, the ambitious melodies and guitars on “Kon Tiki” and “Tom Cruz” are pretty good. The high point, however, is “Undone Melody,” which is a beautiful six-minute ballad that is epic and well-crafted. – Written by DBosket
SIMILAR | Arcade Fire, Great Lake Swimmers, The Mountain Goats, Rogue Wave, Wolf Parade