When Canasta throws around the term "long-awaited" to describe their upcoming album, The Fakeout, the Tease and the Breather, they aren't just whistling Dixie. Considering the band has been a staple—perhaps even the unspoken centerpiece—of Chicago's orchestral pop contingent this millennium, it's hard to believe that this is just their second full‐length. But Canasta doesn't profess to be any sort of lightning rod for the muses. As un‐sexy as it sounds, the members are probably better described as pop craftsmen/women. Their composition process may take time, but it elicits serious pride in the end result.
Boasting a six‐person line‐up, Canasta has always augmented the standard rock set-up with piano, keyboard, violin and trombone. But despite an ever‐changing roster that has included fifteen members (!), founders Matt Priest and Elizabeth Lindau continue to keep the orchestrations meticulous, the lyrics thoughtful, the melodies unforgettable and the sound uniquely "Chicagoan." But don't get the impression they spend all their time cooped up in the studio and rehearsal space. Since forming, they've managed to live out one rock n' roll dream after another. They've toured the country—hitting CMJ and SXSW—and back at home, headlined the legendary Metro and held the prestigious Schubas residency. They've gigged with killer bands like Wilco, Grizzly Bear, Devotchka, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Menomena, Sloan, Kaiser Chiefs, White Rabbits and The Delgados and even played a set for President Obama. Their songs have made their way into TV commercials, a movie trailer and NPR‐s programming and they‐ve sold out pressings of both their debut EP, Find the Time, and full-length, We Were Set Up…
…which brings us to the new album. It's a record that earns its lengthy gestation period and demonstrates a big step forward in songwriting. This album's louder moments are darker, denser and more dramatic than those found on past recordings, with harder‐hitting drums, boomier bass and a swarm of buzzing synths. But conversely, its prettier moments are sparser and more heartbreaking, with vocals bordering on a whisper and the audible creaking and squeaking of piano pedals, guitar frets and violin strings. And along the way, the record flirts with elements new to the band, borrowing from the likes of disco, shoegaze, spaghetti western, gospel and blue‐eyed soul. But in their hands, it never spirals out of control; it's unquestionably still a pop record at heart. The album, the band's first for upstart label RWIM Chicago, will be released this Spring. And despite the wait, Canasta's confident that once folks hear exactly what they've been up to, all will be forgiven and 2010 will emerge as THE YEAR OF THE FAKEOUT! (Typing that last part was every bit as fun as I'd hoped it would be.)
""…deftly balances between being very much of its time
and place and carving out something individual at the same time… The whole band has a great ear for performances that complement each other's work and provides the icing on the cake…""
— Ned Raggett, AllMusic
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""Best of Chicago 2010… loaded with intricate yet accessible orchestral pop music.""
— Huffington Post
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""Rarely is new music categorized as being both immediately accessible and dizzyingly complex, but [Canasta] manage this feat so adroitly at times that it even makes Win Butler and Régine Chassagne look like rookies… manages to astound just as much on the first listen as it does on the fifth…""
— Adequacy.net
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""…the wonderful local ork-pop band that's been working
hard behind its exquisite if awkwardly titled new album…""
— Jim Derogatis, Vocalo.org
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""This stuff is almost prog-rock in its scope and ambition, hurtling along on a sea of
dense instrumentation and atypical rock instruments…
we love Canasta, and don't
see how anybody wouldn't.""
— Chicago Tribune
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""Kitchen-sink indie par excellence, Canasta has a
way with cacophony that is
often as tuneful and melodic
as it is bursting with ideas…""
— Time Out Chicago
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""…sounds so unbelievably good that no major label could improve it… This may seem like an exaggeration, but believe me, indiepop has seldom sounded so pretty as it does
on this second album…""
— Heaven (The Netherlands)
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""Winner: Best of Chicago 2010 Fans' Poll""
— The Deli
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""…The Fakeout, the Tease and the Breather is one of the best Chicago albums of the year.""
— Metromix / RedEye
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""The orchestrated pop on this local sextet's new full-length is so perfect—every note falling into place with deeply satisfying craftsmanship—that you'll swear you've heard it before. But you haven't…""
— M. Kendrick, Chicago Reader
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""The tone is set for an album of open-air chamber pop that sounds like it wants to go haywire (and become a mess) but has been expertly subdued and shaped and is thus sublime… Pop rarely sounds this warm and natural when it's this intricately composed.""
— Chicago Sun-Times
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""Chicago's premier orchestral indie pop outfit… The lengthy break between this and their intriguing 2005 debut, We
Were Set Up, allowed the
band's already dynamic
sound to blossom further… melody that soaks deep into your skin before you know what happened… strikingly gorgeous songs…""
— IGN
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""…The Fakeout, the Tease and the Breather is arguably my favorite album released so far this year.""
— HowWasTheShow?
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""…stunning… Their sophomore effort finds Canasta mastering their craft to create a sonically and emotionally compelling collection of new songs…""
— Jim Kopeny, Chicagoist
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""At the start of Canasta's new album, you can almost feel storm clouds parting for the 11 sunny, rollicking songs that lay ahead. For nearly a decade, the local chamber-pop group has managed to retain its ambition and melodic optimism, without ever coming across as winking…""
— The Onion
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""…this is not a case of local overhype… a detailed and sophisticated body of songs… you will be wondering just like me: How is it possible that these guys haven't got a major contract yet?""
— Pop+Rock (Greece)
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""…they display both an ambition and a sense of range that any number of early 21st century American groups described in similar terms would be wise to follow… subtle… mesmerizing… stunning…""
— AllMusic
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""…Canasta's strength has been mixing genres, ever so slightly, to keep it unpredictable… The band's impressive orchestral pop, which really could catch on at any moment in a big, big way, will not cease in its power – listening again for the first time in a long while, I can't believe I was able to put it down in the first place.""
— New City
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""Canasta has slowly made a name for itself in recent years, thanks to its inventive arrangements… (the band) has separated itself by layering its sounds while retaining remarkable catchiness… Canasta looks primed for a considerable breakthrough.""
— NPR's "World Cafe"
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""Chicago's Canasta play a rich and usually satisfyingly lush brand of orchestral pop… impressively diverse… rapturous…""
— PopMatters
