<p>Finally, the long-awaited full-length debut from local faves Ra Ra Riot. <cite>The Rhumb Line</cite> is a sheer triumph, with wonderful hooks and melodies spanning 10 tight songs in a little over 35 minutes. The band’s travails are well-known by now; its drummer, John Ryan Pike, drowned last year, and that loss is a major theme of the album. But <cite>The Rhumb Line</cite> is no maudlin affair; the somber words are matched with bouncy tracks, such as the fiery opener, “Ghost Under Rocks.” The song deals candidly with Pike’s death but the music soars with a guitar-and-strings arrangement interlocking with some ferocious drumming. “Dying Is Fine” continues in this vein, but humor is thrown into the mix. Lead singer <strong>Wesley Miles</strong> has a bit of <strong>Morrissey</strong> in his delivery, and the band rocks in a style that will remind some of <strong>Vampire Weekend</strong>, but make no mistake: this is a startlingly bold and original pop record, its candid depictions of death and loss balanced with some affirmations of life that inspire as well as entertain.</p>2008-08-16T20:32:49-04:00ra-ra-riot-the-thumb-line2934372Music2008-08-16T20:32:49-04:00Ra Ra Riot: The Rhumb Line2008-08-18T01:03:38-04:00Barsuk
Finally, the long-awaited full-length debut from local faves Ra Ra Riot. ??The Rhumb Line?? is a sheer triumph, with wonderful hooks and melodies spanning 10 tight songs in a little over 35 minutes. The band's travails are well-known by now; its drummer, John Ryan Pike, drowned last year, and that loss is a major theme of the album. But ??The Rhumb Line?? is no maudlin affair; the somber words are matched with bouncy tracks, such as the fiery opener, "Ghost Under Rocks." The song deals candidly with Pike's death but the music soars with a guitar-and-strings arrangement interlocking with some ferocious drumming. "Dying Is Fine" continues in this vein, but humor is thrown into the mix. Lead singer *Wesley Miles* has a bit of *Morrissey* in his delivery, and the band rocks in a style that will remind some of *Vampire Weekend*, but make no mistake: this is a startlingly bold and original pop record, its candid depictions of death and loss balanced with some affirmations of life that inspire as well as entertain.
11.992008-08-16T20:32:49-04:00manual2276653772deny1CD110.992934372truetrueCD2008-08-18T01:03:38-04:002008-08-16T20:32:49-04:005574332129343722008-08-18T01:03:38-04:00http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0000/4544/products/rara.jpg?1268275975