Review: Les Savy Fav

Les Savy Fav
““Inches””
(Frenchkiss)

Some say that the journey itself is better than the end reward. I say those people haven’t heard Inches. This is the culmination of an eight-year journey through nine different record labels, 18 songs and one simple puzzle. Starting in 1996, Les Savy Fav began releasing 7” singles through various labels. If collecting all the good music wasn’t enough, the covers of all the singles, when arranged in a mystical order, make a pretty picture. The only drawback is that some of these suckers are extremely hard to find.

After extensive searching, I’’ve only been able to locate six of the nine. Inches is a collection of all these singles. These are no ordinary singles though. LSF has been planning and writing these songs for this specific project throughout their career. So instead of a random b-side and unedited demo, the LSF fans get an album with more thought and work put into it than any album LSF has put out. The hard work shows. This is easily the best of the best of the Fav. For the 7” collectors out there, this collection is nothing new. They already know how good it is. But for the rest of us this offering gives us the chance to hear everything we were missing out on. The reverse chronology shows the progression of LSF. While the sounds shift from song to song, the strength of their post-punk roots is evident everywhere. “

‘Meet Me in the Dollar Bin’” (the newest of the singles) requires the listener to dance like an epileptic having a fit. “Yawn Yawn Yawn” begins with Seth Jabour’s guitar inviting the listener into the song with a clean rhythm, but dives into a chaotically distorted chorus. A bonus DVD is included in the first pressing of Inches that showcases LSF’s live performance, videos and commentary for every song. The live footage allows viewers to witness the spectacle of a live show without the risk of Tim Harrington rubbing his sweaty chest all over some kid’s face, sucking some guy’s toes or singing “Rodeo” from the girl’s restroom.

During “’Who Rocks the Party’” Harrington receives a stuffed rabbit from the crowd and repeatedly asks it “Who rocks that party that rocks the bunny?” Brilliant. Harrington can do anything and it turns out brilliant. Inches is packed with everything Fav and it will not disappoint the weathered fans or the newbies. It is the end result of a band’s journey from an idea to a finished project. The journey to get here was great, but the end product is the best that Les Savy Fav has ever offered.