Rural Alberta Advantage, The / Hometowns
Album: Hometowns   Collection:General
Artist:Rural Alberta Advantage, The   Added:Jul 2009
Label:Saddle Creek  

A-File Activity
Add Date: 2009-09-27 Pull Date: 2009-11-29
Week Ending: Nov 29 Nov 22 Nov 15 Nov 8 Nov 1 Oct 25 Oct 18 Oct 11
Airplays: 1 3 1 1 3 2 1 1

Recent Airplay
1. Dec 29, 2023: KZSU Time Traveler
Frank, Ab
4. May 11, 2016: Kick Out The Blues
Frank, Ab
2. May 06, 2022: KZSU Time Traveler
Frank, Ab
5. May 06, 2016: Time Traveler
Frank, Ab
3. Sep 09, 2021: Time Traveler (rebroadcast from Oct 2, 2015)
The Ballad Of The Raa
6. Oct 02, 2015: Time Traveler
The Ballad Of The Raa

Album Review
Adam Pearson
Reviewed 2009-09-16
Neutral Milk Hotel impersonators with an even greater tendency to glossy pop. Conor Oberst’s label picked up this buzz band from Canada, known as a great live act, and one of Canada’s best unsigned groups. This is a little too ‘indie pop’ for me, but maybe someone will like it. They are Neutral Milk Hotel idolizers with an inclination to synthesizers and flashy dance pop. The record sounds a little hollow; only the drumming sounds particularly impressive (but usually distracts a bit) while a lot of the instrumentation sounds thin. Vocals are rough-edged wails that also demonstrate the Mangum fixation. A few good songs in here anyway. No FCCs.

1. Melancholy electro dance indie pop with strained vocals, glock, cello comes in, beat gets dancier, slows down to strum. (3:28)
2. Folk strum augmented by big beat, handclaps, sounds like Neutral Milk Hotel. (1:54)
3. Wavering vocals with big percussion, electric strumfest. (2:13)
4. More flashy drumming, sounds like 1… more sad electro indie pop, backing female vocals, dramatic strings. (2:32)
5. Another fast tempo percussion fest, more strummy, backing female ooohs and ahhs. (2:41)
6. Slower but drums are as prominent and stuttery as ever, tune is more simplistic, easy to like. (2:48)
*7. Sounds western, dark, big percussion comes in, horns come in and this is definitely a NMH moment but it’s also fantastic. (2:55)
8. Dancy electro-pop with synth fixation, ends with dramatic a capella and dark lyrics. (3:25)
9. Slower, mellow, a respite from the rest of the blistering pacing, simplistic piano lightly jingles along acoustic strumming. (3:24)
10. Electro intro with cello, arpeggiating guitars, more subdued percussion, tambourine. (3:44)
11. Great brief pop song, intense, short, dynamic. (1:52)
*12. Apparently a live favorite, catchy guitar and vocal line, drums build up. (3:49)
13. Another one-note synthline builds electro indie pop. (2:36)

Track Listing
1. The Ballad Of The Raa   7. Luciana
2. Rush Apart   8. Frank, Ab
3. The Dethbridge In Lethbridge   9. The Air
4. Don't Haunt This Place   10. Sleep All Day
5. The Deadroads   11. Four Night Rider
6. Drain The Blood   12. Edmonton
  13. In The Summertime