Destroyer: Trouble in Dreams

Destroyer frontman Dan Bejar decided the lineup that recorded 2006 album Destroyer's Rubies should remain intact indefinitely, so follow-up Trouble in Dreams finds the Vancouver indie-pop band testing its own limits. "Blue Flower/Blue Flame" trumps Ladybug Transistor at their own game, while "Dark Leaves Form a Thread" turns the frantic psychedelic rock of "3000 Flowers" into a brilliant pop song. Otherwise, Trouble is driven by acoustic guitar and only textured with piano, something of a departure from Bejar's keyboard-heavy past records. Those stowing the ubiquitous Bowie comparisons won't make it past "The State," though the Bowie-isms here are more The Man Who Sold the World than Hunky Dory. "My Favourite Year" wields a melancholy sort of triumph ("It was a very good year, and now it's gone"), while "Shooting Rockets" brings the entire immaculately paced album into scope. Listeners are never made to feel rushed, prodded, dragged along or left behind; Destroyer guides them along expertly. Besides being stunningly beautiful on its own, "Introducing Angels" uses Blood on the Tracks-style vocals better than anyone save Dylan himself. So while Trouble in Dreams is remarkable, Destroyer's next offering may be flat-out unassailable.