ACCORDING to the blurb, this four-piece hails from Montreal, which is wrong on two counts. Firstly, harpist Sarah Pagé is clearly neither a Barr nor a brother; secondly Brad and Andrew, who are both Barrs and brothers, are from Massachusetts.
Pedantry? Not really because this goes some way to explaining their style. While there are obvious traditional French influences, thanks to Pagé and keyboardist Andrès Vial, the two Barrs are out and out American rockers, favouring dirty, over-driven guitars and clattering drums.
There are quieter moments, hence the folk label, but tracks like Come In The Water and Little Lover are more east coast, in the vein of The Decemberists, than Canadienne. Then there is the aptly named Half Crazy, where the band really go for it; all manic slide guitar and thumping drums, over a sweet bed of tinkling harp.
This is by far the best track and displays an originality that sets The Barr Brothers apart. Sadly they only hint at it elsewhere, notably on The Bear At The Window. And that really is a shame.
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