Rating: NNN
Ever since their 2008 album was shortlisted for the Polaris Prize, Hey Rosetta! have had to contend with more attention than most Newfoundland bands. It’s admirable, then, that instead of immediately cranking out another album to capitalize on that acclaim, they spent three years crafting their follow-up.
Or maybe that’s just how long it takes to produce music as unapologetically rafter-reaching as Hey Rosetta!’s. Aiming for the same puffed-up collective catharsis as Arcade Fire, Tim Baker and co. layer strings, horns, mandolins and anything else they can get their hands on to inflate the songs into anthems.
There are a few unexpected touches, like the throat-sung ending of Parson Brown (Upirngaangutuq Iqalunni). And sometimes the songs stray from the quiet-start/epic-buildup formula. Generally, though, if you’ve heard Into Your Lungs, you won’t be too surprised by Seeds. But, hey, why mess with a good thing?
Top track: Parson Brown (Upirngaangutuq Iqalunni)
Hey Rosetta! play Lee’s Palace February 23 and 24
