Junior Boys

Junior Boys don't let the bitter cold, Canadian air affect their mindset or their creative output. The duo—it's Jeremy, who's OG and co-founded the band, and Matthew—may be surrounded by freezing temperatures but that doesn't stop them from toiling diligently over the task of stringing together intricate, delicately designed, electro indie pop for those who think computers, are, well, OK!

Begone Dull Care is Junior Boys' third longplayer, and this electic work culls its name from a 1949 Oscar-winning short film. It’s another of the pair’s worthwhile entries into the indietronica sphere, building on the previous foundation. The album lives and dies by its copious beats, danceability and neo-disco intensity. “Hazel” emits a “created in a loft” characteristic, while “Bits and Pieces” carries that assembled-by-a-laptop aura. Through it all, the Junior Boys steer clear of “hipper than thou territory." They are careful and meticulous about how they design their compositions. Nothing is left to chance or happenstance. A considerable amount of time, effort and thought was poured into Begone Dull Care and it shows. There’s some electro funk, plenty of polish and an outpouring of those essential beats. Rockers and hip-hoppers will find a record such as this sailing clear over their heads, but the subset that swallows indietronica whole will be satiated by this collection. Overall, if the Junior Boys dominate your iPod playlist, then you’ve probably earned yourself an instant shot of indie cred.

— Amy Sciarretto
05.07.09

Taking its title and inspiration from a collaboration between animator/filmmaker Norman McLaren and jazz pianist Oscar Peterson, Begone Dull Care is, at once, the most upbeat and subtle album from Junior Boys yet. At first, these songs seem to lack distinction from one another, but the duo's painstaking attention to detail and nuance -- traits they recognized in McLaren's work -- gradually glints through, however briefly. Other than the hypnotic "Work" and the playfully geeky "Hazel," the set is punchless, more a pleasant mood album fit for casual background listening, lacking the unnerved tension that runs through the majority of Last Exit and So This Is Goodbye. The most daring aspect of the album is the title, in particular its second word. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide