The Czars

The Czars

Goodbye (Bella Union)

Denver's Czars are full of surprises. The introductory strains of Goodbye belies the title song's – and the album's – acid tongue. "Goodbye" is a lush, melancholy track driven by nostalgic piano and wistful vocals that caresses the air with its lovelorn balladry. Then it turns into something decidedly darker as singer John Grant starts wishing death to the object of his affection. It's a bit disconcerting and a bit of a dirty trick, as the listener has been swaying along with a sense of woozy well-being inside the secretly venomous tune all along. "Trash" implores its object to "stick your dick in all the things you bought with your hard-earned cash." Ahem. The quartet's third album, released in the UK on Bella Union in 2004, is a study in incongruities and homage, from Pink Floyd to A Flock of Seagulls and Air, all while playing with the expectations of genre, concealing a little pellet of hatred that explodes within the lovely confines of each song. Such trickery is this album's triumph and failure, depending on how you feel about the ol' bait and switch. (Wednesday, March 15, 10pm @ Fox and Hound)