Pick of the Week #25: Snailhouse - Lies on the Prize

I'm not sure being on the Polaris long list is going to necessarily vault Mike Feuerstack a.k.a. Snailhouse into super-stardom (I understand to be a super-star now you have to appear on reality TV), but, for what its worth, it gave me another reminder that Lies on the Prize was on my "to check out" list. He appeared on the Hibiscus & Rosehips Charity Album (Pick of the Week #15), and "Who We Are" was def. one of my favourite tracks that appeared on that compilation.

For an album called Lies on the Prize, Feuerstack doesn't mess around, with your time at least. The collection of 13 songs are all relatively short with the album clocking in at just under 40 mins with most of the songs hovering around the 3 minute mark (3 x 13 = 39, makes sense...). So, while the album isn't exactly epic, it does have enough time to bounce around and traverse some interesting territory.

The opener, "Dollar Signs", has a fairly bare bones opening - lone acoustic guitar - then moves into acoustic guitar with tribal drumming, a la The Acorn. The following track, "(Not)Superstitious" is a much more standard soft rock/pop affair, while a tracks like "Tone Deaf Birds" and "They Won't Believe You" are surrounded by SOOF-esque horns. Then, toward the latter half of the album Lies becomes a decidedly more countrified affair with Feuerstack sounding a good deal like Tom Petty as his voice strains high on "Fire Alarm". That said, its not as though the album is jumpy, or lacks continuity, more that it contains interesting variations around a similar theme.

Lies on the Prize isn't going to end up on my 'Best of 2009' list (mostly b/c its a 2008 album), but, it has proven to me that at least a couple of the MTL bands that were nominated for the Polaris were deserving...

[mp3] Snailhouse - Who We Are
[mp3] Snailhouse - Dollar Signs

Pick of the Week #1: Ketch Harbour Wolves
Pick of the Week #2: Rah Rah
Pick of the Week #3: Glasvegas/Animal Collective
Pick of the Week #4: Bruce Peninsula
Pick of the Week #5: The Antlers
Pick of the Week #6: The Darcys
Pick of the Week #7: Ohbijou
Pick of the Week #8: Gentlemen Husbands
Pick of the Week #9: Chris Whitley
Pick of the Week #10: Alela Diane
Pick of the Week #11: K'naan
Pick of the Week #12: TOR/Sufjan Stevens
Pick of the Week #13: Timber Timbre
Pick of the Week #14: Justis
Pick of the Week #15: Hibiscus & Rosehips Compilation
Pick of the Week #16: Patrick Watson
Pick of the Week #17: Olenka and the Autumn Lovers
Pick of the Week #18: The Liptonians
Pick of the Week #19: Sunparlour Players
Pick of the Week #20: Black Hat Brigade
Pick of the Week #21: Howie Beck
Pick of the Week #22: Pink Mountaintops
Pick of the Week#23: Still Life Still
Pick of the Week #24: Hayden