Tegan and Sara

Canadian duo Tegan and Sara Quin have been edging ever-closer to mainstream recognition since their 2000 debut. Their last release, So Jealous, tightened their songwriting and taste for hooks, winning them exposure on shows like Grey's Anatomy and Veronica Mars. Now, the Chris Walla (Death Cab for Cutie)-produced The Con adds slicker synth layers and rich production, building a melancholic intensity that is both complex and accessible.

Maintaining their distinctive vocal tones and quirky song structures, the band's smoother style is a sugar pill for the stark emotion of this break-up album. Title track "The Con" deftly weaves thwarted romance with a crescendo of harmony, and the blatant desperation of "I'm capsized now, on the edge of safe," is softened by a swoop of melody. This frankness lingers throughout: "Are You Ten Years Ago" echoes with a low tone of confusion, while "Nineteen" is a breezy, sweet reflection on a past relationship that nonetheless ends in "goodbye." Polished yet dense, The Con should take the band closer to commercial success.

—Abby McDonald
07.24.07

Although identical twin sisters Tegan and Sara Quin first appeared in the music scene in the late '90s playing the kind of folk-rock and folk-punk more associated with other Lilith Fair (in which they participated) artists of the time, by the time 2007 rolled around they had moved into much poppier territory. It was a progression, to be sure, from This Business of Art to their fourth Vapor full-length -- one that can be heard in the time spent on production, the louder guitars -- but that still may not prepare listeners for The Con. Produced by Death Cab for Cutie's Chris Walla, the album is full of quirky, Aqueduct-like keyboards, punchy bass from Weezer's Matt Sharp and AFI's Hunter Burgan, and even some guitar help from Kaki King that stretch and shove their way into the spaces between Tegan and Sara's hook-driven melodies and clean harmonies, more complex than anything they've done before. Though each sister writes and sings lead on seven tracks, it is Sara especially who writes the more intricate pieces ("Relief Next to Me," "Like O, Like H"), showing a more adult songwriter, one who has matured since her first work came out, while Tegan draws more from simpler emo and pop-punk arrangements ("Nineteen," "Hop a Plane"), her songs more straightforward, both compositionally and lyrically, than her sister's. But this isn't to say that there's a kind of disparity or harsh contrast on The Con. Much like the duo's voices, which share a timbre, a clear relationship, even if their actual tonality differs, the songs on the album complement each other, play off the other's strengths, and make the record very much an entity instead of simply a collection of tracks, setting it off as an impressive step forward in their already commendable discography. ~ Marisa Brown, Rovi