Avenging Unicorns

Much like Mclusky, I discovered the Unicorns too late. And it's a shame, because what a great band they were. The Unicorns didn't last too long, they were around from 2000-2005. Apparently near the end of their run they were suffering from "exhaustion", playing so-so shows and getting in fights with audience members. In December of 2004, they posted a simple message on their website, "The Unicorns are dead, R.I.P.". That was apparently the end of that.

The Unicorns "Les Os"

The Unicorns "Evacuatin' Something Warm"

[right click to download]

But they live on, in my headphones anyway. The Unicorns craft perfect pop melodies with clever and funny lyrics attached. Song titles like "Emasculate the Masculine" and "Evacuate the Vacuous", are some of my new favorites, as well as "Evacuatin' Somethin' Warm" which is obviously a childish piece about taking a piss. One their lyrics proclaimed "I work out / but i don't sweat". The Unicorns did dig a little deeper than simple humor, though. "Les Os" is a meditation on the idea that love is simply a chemical occurrence in the mind, and not an unexplainable force that can overtake all of us.



From the ashes of the Unicorns, Islands was formed. Unicorns' front man Nick Diamonds and drummer J'Aime Tambeur (yes, they're from Montreal) recorded Islands' first record with collaborations with members of The Arcade Fire and Wolf Parade (yeah, they're all from Montreal too. It's the new Seattle. Didn't ya know?). Islands is definitely a departure from what the Unicorns were doing, but the same sensibilities are there. Their approach to pop music is unique to say the least; they just look at it a slightly different way. The album combines elements of pop, hip hop and breezy Tahitiian strumming.

Islands "Volcanoes"

Islands "Don't Call Me Whitney, Bobby"

[right click to download]

I haven't listened to "Volcanoes" enough to tell you what I think it's about, but images from 'Return To The Sea' stick out to me, such as "in icy Argentina they say now i've seen it all" and "fuck what you heard, you were lied to", from "Don't Call Me Whitney, Bobby". It's these mysterious allusions that keep me listening over and over again.

Let's hope that Islands doesn't have the same fate as the Unicorns did. Of course if they do, they can just reform again and call themselves something like Gazzelle Parade.

Islands Official Website

Secret Unicorns Forum