Still helmed by ethereal-voiced songwriter
Jane Penny
and guitarist/songwriter
David Carriere
, Montreal's
TOPS
continue to explore and distort AM pop and sophisti-pop influences on their fourth album,
I Feel Alive
. It was their first to be recorded as a five-piece with the addition of keyboardist
Marta Cikojevic
, who joined the group for tours in support of 2017's
Sugar at the Gate
. The more affectionate and reassuring
opens with the shimmery, warped disco of "Direct Sunlight," which merges soft, bleep-y, '80s-inspired keyboard tones with jaunty, funk-leaning rhythms and
Penny
's breathy high range. Meanwhile, the song's lyrics include sentiments like "Promise me we'll always be together/We make sense in all types of weather." It's followed by an equally lively title track and then the jazzier guitar progressions of "Pirouette." That song is still immersed in pillowy '80s keyboard timbres alongside whimsical, laser-like effects. Despite the album's bright, playful palette and uplifting title, some of the set list takes on a more yearning, melancholy tone, including the self-descriptive "Ballads & Sad Movies" and breakup tune "Take Down," whose 5/8 time signature and alternating vocal tracks reflect a more unsettled state of mind. Scattered throughout are borderline earworms, such as "OK Fine Whatever" and "Colder & Closer" in addition to the aforementioned "I Feel Alive."
have pretty much mastered their distinctive niche over the course of four albums, and in that respect,
should provide a familiar comfort, if an off-kilter one, for established fans. Initiated and new listeners alike, however, will be treated to a batch of well-crafted, sensual songs for the down-time hours. ~ Marcy Donelson