For Carrier, The Dodos's fifth album, front man Meric Long (singer/guitarist) was keen to head in a new direction and reinvent the band. This was mainly down to the uncertainty of the band’s trajectory which was thrown into turmoil with the unexpected passing of guitarist Chris Reimer.

This time around Long began writing the lyrics before the music - something that was new for him, creatively. The album was recorded in the band’s hometown of San Francisco, allowing for less time constraints and a more pressure-free experience than past out-of-state sessions had afforded.

Just a few personal thoughts I had when listening to this album: 'Substance' has a feel of The Last Shadow Puppets about it; 'Confidence' has an interesting instrumental segment that reminded me of the sort of instrumental breaks that Genesis used to adopt in the '70s; 'Holidays' reminded me, in essence of a Keane track; and 'Death' sounds very similar to The Last Shadow Puppets's 'The Time Has Come Again'.

The album contains 11 tracks and lasts for 41 min, 04 sec. This is a solid indie rock album that's well worth investing a little time to get to know.

8

Nick Smithson