2011 Montreal Mirror Review of Winter's Gate

Here’s the latest review (December 8, 2011) of the Vertical Squirrels’ second album, Winter’s Gate, courtesy of Lawrence Joseph at the Montreal Mirror:

VERTICAL SQUIRRELS
Winter’s Gate
(Barcode Free)

Garden pests or welcome guests—it depends on your proclivity for improvised instrumentals. The 14 pop, funk and, well, squirrelly tracks on this sophomore CD find the band honing in on their sound, running along the fence more than meandering around the yard. Most pieces feature the highly compressed, fuzzed-out lead guitar incursions of Daniel Fischlin, backed by circling piano cells, bass and clattering drums. Think Swell Maps circa Whatever Happens Next… with Nikki Sudden replaced by Robert Fripp. 8/10 Trial Track: "Gate, No Fence” (Lawrence Joseph)

 

Thanks for listening Montreal!