The Kissaway Trail - Sleep Mountain (Bella Union) 08/03/10

The Kissaway Trail still fall on the periphery of most indie folks radars, and clearly something is amiss. If the Danish cured quintet were British they’d likely have the home-team support afforded the likes of The View and Arctic Monkeys. As it happens, ‘Sleep Mountain’ is another album chock full of anthems that’s epical in scale and rollicking in delivery, a stalwart follow up to the eponymous 2007 debut that sees The Kissaway Trail building their sound to an ‘Unforgettable Fire’ stature.

‘SDP’ and ‘Beat Your Heartbeat’ are some of the most galvanising moments - the former a Arcade Fire/The National soused track that goes great guns with it’s chiming bells and riffing guitars, the latter a Jason Lytle/ Grandaddy/ Sigur Ros-like buddy song that's great pop. ‘New Year’ glistens in a way that such a title oughta, with quasi-religious sing-along moments á la Arcade Fire, while ‘Don‘t Wake Up‘ could be the bastard son of the Montreal bands epic with lead singer Corneliussen even sounding like Win Butler and the accordion pushing the envelope further in that direction.

‘Painter’ and ‘Whirr Of Wings’ feel stulted, however, the former intent on navel-gazing and the latter lacking a sure-fire grip, while ‘Friendly Fire’ occupies a no man’s land of reflective and mournful soundscaping along with skittering, breakbeat drum rhythms.

‘Philadelphia’, meanwhile, is the Neil Young cover that sounds like Mercury Rev soundtracking ‘Dr Zhivago’, tres moderne, and quite the rosy apple, and ‘New Lipstick’ hums away with mandolin, hammering drums and zydeco accordion that’s hip, poppy and quirky - a wiggler to boot. ‘Enemy’ is equally quirky and choice with its’ programming, like some unknown artist playing the Big Chill, and the closer ‘Three Million Hours’ concludes with epical proportions á la Mercury Rev.

‘Sleep Mountain’ has an urgency that falters on a few moments when sincerity is the order of the day, giving the album a broad-screen and ambitious feel courtesy of the renowned producer Peter Katis (Interpol, The National). The Kissaway Trail are clearly at their best with good-time indie rather than message music, a territory well-stationed by Arcade Fire whereas TKT are best suited to The Flaming Lips-style oddities. ‘Sleep Mountain’, however, ought to set the bells a-ringin’ and bolster the Scandinavian charge.