Young and Sexy is no exception. I have to admit, I was a little put off by the name. I mean, it makes me think of a bunch of arrogant 16 year olds with little life experience. But I got over my initial aversion pretty quickly once I started listening to the CD. Panic When You Find It, their third release, is beautiful, catchy, if conventional, indie rock. It is easy to get lost in their fantastic harmonies and subtle musicianship. It feels like a daydream in the afternoon, when you let yourself relax and forget about all the stress and everything that you have to complete by the end of the day. You put it on and you are instantly transported somewhere else, somewhere incredible.
Young and Sexy is made up of Paul Pittman, Lucy Brain, Brent McDonald on bass, Alex Brain on drums, and Andre Lagace on lead guitar. Although they have experienced various personnel changes since they released their first album in 2002, the current makeup has great chemistry and the vocals and instrumentation fuse seamlessly into a pleasing sound.
The harmonies of Pittman and Lucy Brain are truly amazing and are reminiscent of 60s pop, especially on “Turn on Your Weakness” which made me think immediately of Simon and Garfunkel.
A song by song breakdown seems unnecessary as this album has a very cohesive sound. Each song flows right into the next, often indistinguishable to the listener. My only complaint about the album is that the tracks are a little too similar, I would love to hear Young and Sexy push the envelope a little, move outside of their comfort zone; I’m sure whatever they do would sound absolutely fantastic.
Panic When You Find It is on Mint Records, the same label as the New Pornographers, and I could definitely see Young and Sexy achieving a similar level of success. Their music is extremely accessible and almost impossible not to like, even if mainstream indie rock is not usually your thing. Spin even profiled the band in an article entitled “Eight must-hear bands from B.C. that are A-okay,” suggesting that Young and Sexy could be headed for cross border success. I hope so. Despite my desire to foster a local music scene, Young and Sexy is too good to keep a local Vancouver secret.
