The Unicorns Album: “Who Will Cut Our Hair When We've Gone?”

Hailing from their hometown and indie pop Mecca of Montreal, Canadian rock group the Unicorns seemed destined to forever walk the line of obscurity in the US. Started in the late nineties with the two High School friends Nicholas "Neil" Diamonds and Alden Ginger, the `Corns debut album, early 2003's Unicorns are People Too¸ was a relative smash in Canada, hitting number 29 on the charts, but it never made it over here to the US. And with their sophomore effort and American debut album, late 2003's Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?, they really don't seem to be getting any closer to achieving mainstream popularity. Not that they should have to. Nor should they try to for that matter, because "The Unicorns" second album is, quite simply put, a pop masterpiece.

Beginning with the faux amateurism of the song "I Don't Wanna Die" and ending with the abrupt cough and quick patter out of "Ready to Die," Hair walks the line between carefully paced meditation on the human inability to accept death and sunny synthesizer laden pop melodies so prevalent in today's indie rock scene. They deliver lines like "I predict: I die in a plane crash. I see it now, I die in a car on tour, and there's no one to stop this," with all of the catchy hooks you'd find in any mindless pop song on the radio. The whole album plays out like one giant ironic twist. On the outside its fresh hooks and melodic pop make The Unicorns sound like 80s revival hipsters, in the vein of Franz Ferdinand and the Strokes, but at their core they play out more like wannabe philosophers. They sound like Plato pretending a pop icon; Gandhi fronting as Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie's lead singer.) And though this comparison is a little farfetched, it isn't so out there.

Every song seems to be a deliberation on some form of human trial or suffering. The slow and haunting "Child Star" tells the tale of a washed up child actor arguing with fan about his star status. "Les Os" speaks of adultery and "moral resignation." "Inoculate the Innocuous" tells of drugs being given to cancer patients. And, of course, there's the beginning and ending songs of "I Don't Wanna Die" and "Ready to Die," the former telling of one man's inability to accept his inevitable death, and the latter him finally accepting it, ending with a cough and abrupt rip of a record needle spinning off into nothingness. One could literally spend hours dissecting the hidden meanings of the relatively nonsensical lyrics, but why would one want to? For the real fun of the album is not the overall meaning of it, it's the hooks and rhythms that pepper it all in good natured and harmlessly glorious fashion.

The synthesizer chorus of "Ghost Mountain" is a major highlight, combining the pacing of the lyrics and the solemn beat of a confused piano, as is the odd blending of a penny whistle and guitar on "Sea Ghost" and the wicked power ballad of "Jellybones." But the main attraction of the album, as well as the most accessible, is the punk-ish track "I Was Born (A Unicorn)." It is pretty much the summation of the album itself, explaining the meaning of its relatively obscure title as well the significance of the band's name itself. It explains, with an odd godlike background voiceover: "When dreaming beasts are dying down, and on out. They're there, for if we agree they're there, they're there. Alive and shorn." The song then goes on to an all out drum-tastic finale, explaining that "We're the Unicorns. We're more than horses. We're the Unicorns. And we're people too!"

Take from this what you will. The whole album's really up to interpretation, which is really what makes the experience that much more special. You can approach it as a metaphor for life and death, or just a sun laced feel good Canadian pop album. And there in lies my recommendation. Whether you're the type who likes good pop songs, you love this album. If you prefer deep, insightful ballads, you love this album. If you're a human being who doesn't mind some odd humor and catchy albeit sugar coated pop, this album is for you. It's sad to see that this band didn't have the chance to catch on here in America like their Canadian pop brethren the New Pornographers and the Arcade Fire, as they disbanded in December of 2004. Oh well, I guess it's true that the Unicorns weren't meant for this world. Now if we could only find somebody to cut their hair.

Grade: A

Yes, the above reviews are right. It's sugar, it's energy, it's experimental, and most of all...it's fantastic! I'm in love with this CD. They are very experimental in their sounds (using everything from a echoplex to a clarinet), but they do it with style. It's a fun CD, yet has a deeper spiritual undertone to it. Serious enough to keep your attention, yet not taking themselves so serious you lose interest. Highly recommended if you're into the indie scene.

let's see, who does amazon.com recommend along with the 'corns? franz ferdinand, the shins, broken social scene, decemberists... basically, every break-through indie act from the last year, none of whom approach the unicorns' sound. this isn't to say that bands like these have any less merit than these canadian charmers; in fact, i think many of them present more staying power, promise, and "pop" songs at their finest.

examining "who will cut our hair..." as an album, however, it blows the other titles away. experimental, consuming and addictive, this cd isn't a desert island choice; it IS a desert island, its own world that completely mesmerizes you by the second listen. certainly my most rewarding purchase from last year: the one with the greatest staying power, the most charisma, and the most challenge to the music that normally satisfies me. i won't even try to describe their sound; if you've made it this far, you owe it to yourself to give the unicorns a try.

If there's one music scene that you can always rely on consistently churn out quality, it's the Montreal indie rock Mecca. In the last few years, we've seen them give us Godspeed You Black Emperor, The Arcade Fire, Stars, and The Unicorns. Out of all the bands in the scene, The Unicorns were the most pop-friendly, chock full of infectious, quirky tunes.

Armed with a strictly tongue-in-cheek attitude (check out their bio if you want, it's pretty witty) and a love of the supernatural, as seen in song titles such as "Tuff Ghost", "Ghost Mountain", and "Sea Ghost", The Unicorns manage to create their own neat little fairytale universe with "Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?".

Some people claim that they're nothing but a Flaming Lips imitation, but The Unicorns arrangements, are far more interesting and unpredictable. Take "Jellybones" for example: it starts off with a crazy-cool keyboard-ish guitar solo, then moves on into indie-pop territory (complete with dance beats!), followed by a twangy garage-rock section, and ending it all with a soft lullaby outro with a delusional chant of "but this is life, so we'll survive"...all in 2 minutes and 30 seconds! There are also alot of moments on the CD which take influences from places entirely out of the rock music spectrum, such as the hip-hop and electronica on "Ghost Mountain", and 16-bit Sega Genesis music on "Tuff Ghost", which is made to sound like some sort of Halloween level. These guys know their variety.

Unfortunately, any more sightings of this beautiful, mythical beast were abruptly destroyed in December 2004, when the band broke up, after only a short 4 year run. "Who Will Cut Our Hair..." along with the "2014" EP, is all we're going to have to remember them by. Let's hope there's a place in heaven for unicorns.

Hehehehehe

I bought the album because amazon users spoke highly of them. I went down to my nearest store... the art cover instantly tickeld me fancy... It looked like a lot of FUN! The art reminded me of those Monty Python videos I'd always see at the video store, in the weekly section. Dont know much about monty python but I was willing to shed some light into my life... its summer. Most of my other stuff is pretty mellow\sad\angry...

I dont think I have ever seen an art cover so well capture its content. The music is exactly that. Comedic tone, singing about clouds, ghosts, running from lightning...

Its an outdoor affair but very Rocky Horror Show.

Its fun, takes the piss.... As silly as the title itself. "Who will cut our hair when we're gone!"

But that's not what makes this album rock... its those darn melodies... catchy hooks, strong one-liners. These guys know how to make music... among all of the god knows how many different instruments crashing together... this stuff comes out anything but experimental.. Flaming Lips will be kicking themselves right now!

But... inevitably... there is some initial down time with this album... it'll take a while before you catch on to its pop. The first time I heard the CD... I was sweating... thinking it was a bad idea... be patient and you will be rewared 10 fold.

If you like the art cover... chances are... you've been longing for some FUN music that works like all that sad\angry stuff you've been buying..... and you probably know by now dance music wont cut it... this little gem will!