This week's feature: Kevin Drew

Kevin Drew, Broken Social Scene Presents: Spirit If... (Arts & Crafts)

WHO

Broken Social Scene frontman doing the solo thing, accompanied by several other members of Broken Social Scene.

DISCOGRAPHY

Broken Social Scene Presents: Spirit If...

IN A NUTSHELL

Spirit If... won't make people forget Drew's work in Broken Social Scene, but it's still pretty strong from start to finish.

THE STORY

Even after listening to Kevin Drew's first solo outing a few times, I'm still left with all kinds of questions, none of which have anything to do with the music, all of which have to do with how to approach the concept of Spirit If.... Should it be judged separately from the work of Broken Social Scene? If yes, why does BSS present it, and why do roughly a dozen members of the BSS collective appear? If no, then -- again, given that roughly a dozen members make appearances -- why not just call it the follow-up to Broken Social Scene's self-titled album of a few years ago?

Admittedly, none of these questions have anything to do with whether Spirit If... is worth listening to. And the answer to that question is an unqualified "yes". This is a dynamic album, going off in every direction without any warning one minute, and then retreating back to the smallest places the next.

In this respect, this album isn't all that different from either Broken Social Scene or You Forgot It In People. In fact, if most people heard songs like "Farewell To The Pressure Kids", "Fucked Up Kid" and "Backed Out On The..." without knowing anything about their origins, they could be forgiven for believing they were hearing some previously unreleased BSS material. Drew's main band has developed a very distinctive sound over their first couple of albums, and not even the presence of J. Mascis on that last track can change the fact that these songs fit into that template.

The moments where Spirit If... really shines, though, are the times when it cuts back on the noisy chaos and tries to focus a little. Both "Aging Faces/Losing Places" and "Gang Bang Suicide" may be related to "Anthems For A Seventeen-Year Old Girl", but it's a very distant relation thanks to the little electronic flourishes inserted here and there. Taking things down even further (in terms of volume, at least), "Broke Me Up" suggests that all that time Drew is rumoured to be spending with Feist is manifesting itself in his music, while "Safety Bricks" is astoundingly gorgeous, and simply must be heard.

And it's because of this -- that there are moments of real beauty on here -- that the question of how to evaluate Spirit If... doesn't really matter. You can call it a Broken Social Scene album, or a Kevin Drew album, or a joint venture; it doesn't really matter. All that does matter is that this is a pretty impressive album, and you should listen to it without trying to break it down into issues of who made what.