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In today's music world, it's difficult to keep Sweden down. With two notable releases already gracing 2007 (Pg. Lost's Yes I Am and Aerial's The Sentinel), the relatively small country is continuing a longstanding tradition of upstaging the rest of the world. Obviously Sweden was upset when I claimed the US would dominate the instrumental rock world this year, and now they've banded together and are hellbent on proving me wrong. Scraps of Tape's This is a Copy is this a Copy is the third knockout album spawned from the Swedes in just two months, and we've taken it upon ourselves to call it the must hear album of February.

Our more obsessive readers will be familiar with Scraps of Tape for its debut album, Read Between the Lines At All Times, which was released in 2004 via the lovely TenderVersion Recordings. This humble record was met with much critical acclaim, and some "post-rock website" went as far as to claim it the 6th best album of the year. Some would argue that this is the album that raised the bar for instrumental rock in Sweden, and subsequent releases have shown this is not a country to take lightly. Three years later the quartet returns with another offering, this time in the form of This is a Copy is this a Copy. 

Expectations for the new album were certainly high, especially here at The Silent Ballet camp. Read Between the Lines left many open doors for further exploration, and for years Scraps of Tape kept us guessing at where newer material would take the band. While it's difficult to really analyze the band's work and say which album is better, it should suffice to know that This is a Copy maintains the high standard of excellent set by the predecessor, if not nudges ahead due to the greater depth provided in the sophomore effort. What's the secret to beating expectation? Scandinavia indicates that it's simply not caring. Over the past few years we've seen some of the best albums from the post-rock world being produced by bands who generally don't care to tour more than a few weeks out of the year, and are happy to go back to their day jobs afterwards. I'd go as far to say that these bands probably aren't losing sleep at night conjuring up the next best instrumental epic, and it's exactly this carefree, liberating spirit that marks many of the artists' work and sets them apart from the pack, Scraps of Tape included.

This is a Copy is this a Copy immediately answers the listener's question, "What does this sound like?" This is a bit ironic, of course, because it doesn't take long to realize that Scraps of Tape approach the drawing board with enough fresh ideas to keep the most seasoned critics happy, but the band is aware that any artist who doesn't have lyrics (foreshadow!) will immediately be written off as a clone of one of the "Big 5." Fortunately, there is no post-rock giant in Scandinavia, and the bands there sure seem to be benefiting from not living under the shadow of another. Just how effective Scraps of Tape makes this statement is what is truly dazzling.

Styles are adopted and discarded so readily in This is a Copy, that it is quite astonishing that the album doesn't dig its own grave with its ambition. But this is where great songwriting truly shines; subtle nuances create a powerful cohesion that binds the tracks together, despite the varying levels of creative force that strive to break it all apart. At heart, Scraps of Tape vary between post-rock and instrumental indie-rock, but the band is not shy about dipping into the post-metal pool, borrowing a few cues from the jazz world, or putting an experimental bent on a track. Whenever an opportunity presents itself, Scraps of Tape play it risky, and this feeling that you never know what's going to be coming next elevates the album to a new level of enjoyment.

"Death as it Should be" immediately stuns the listener and washes away any preconceived expectations of the album. Although the band has certainly enjoyed being loud in the past, it's always been within the confines of the quiet/loud dynamic which so marks the post-rock world, but "Death as it Should be" draws from the glorious energy of the metal world and comes in with guns firing from the very beginning. Heavy riffs introduce the track, producing an enormous amount of momentum with very little effort, and is carried along through the middle of the track by a very strong, playful guitar melody. From there the track unwinds; the guitars relieve the surmounting pressure and the drums gradually slow down the pace until it putters to a complete stop. This leaves a lone guitar to carry the torch, and it sees fit to go out the same way it entered, in a hellish fury of distortion.

With the slightest transition, Scraps of Tape realigns its sights with "Hands in the Air," arguably the strongest track amongst the ten on board. Swift drumming and subtle guitar motions give a performance so seamless that it challenges the unshakable legacy of Tracer AMC. The track oozes of subtlety. Unlike many bands who rely almost solely on guitar, bass, and drums, Scraps of Tape is never overbearing with pedal effects. Instead, the band optimizes the effects they do choose to use rather than layering the track with superfluous noise. Less is more, so we are shown.

 "Pickpockets Vow" introduces the newfound pipes in the band's work. Without vocals the instrumental part of the track is basically a minimalist post-rock segue. Vocals are placed over top, ignoring the need for chorus or verse, and the detached vocals function well within the band's highly organic sound. This kind of sonic anchoring reminds me a bit of Tulsa Drone, though in practice they are much different.

It would be tedious to continue to dissect the album track by track, but needless to say, this wonderful flow and transitions of styles continues and is explored more with each track that passes. Strings and brass make appearances, the band takes detours down jazzy routes, electronics twinkle to life, energy is unleashed, sorrow is expressed, heartfelt lyrics are sang... it's just about anything and everything you could desire from a musical work of art. The highlight of the album for many will be "Since All the Birds are Gone, Shouldn't We?" This  track is the most similar to Scraps of Tape's earlier work from the new offering, and it carries with it the most baggage from the post-rock world. In effect, it's the most epic track at hand, and technically should provide the climax of the album.

But it doesn't. The climax rests solely on "Thirteen Thousand," a surprisingly strong, forceful track in a small four minute container. Overdubs usher in the track, then quickly fade into the background, only to make an appearance intermittently throughout the remainder. All of the tension that's been built up over the album's length rests on "Thirteen Thousand" for release, and the last two tracks will play out the denouement. It comes as a great surprise that the band elects to allow vocals to carry the responsibility of deflating the album. Everything that had been going incredibly right with this album could have all been dropped carelessly due to a poor vocal performance, made all the more alarming coming from a band who's spent less than five minutes of the previous thirty singing. But, the vocals are spot on. Passive-aggressive and biting, this is exactly what we needed: "There is thirteen thousand breaths left inside of me. I'm losing them fast. Hold your breath - less is more. The words you speak sound tired. You need the friends you have left to wrap around your heart." The tracks that follow are merely icing on the cake.

I personally come away from This is a Copy is this a Copy somewhat disappointed. It's disappointing that more bands haven't attempted to be as daring as Scraps of Tape is on this album. I'm disappointed that many of the other bands who have tried have fallen on their faces. What's not disappointing is this album; in fact, it's rather remarkable. If there were more bands like Scraps of Tape out in the world, this so-called "post-rock" genre wouldn't appear to be downing in a sea of similarity to those who casually peer into this world. Instead, most music fans won't look much past Explosions in the Sky this year and will conclude that not much has changed in 4 years. It's all fucking lies.

~Jordan Volz