Product Description

Their 2006 EP, "A Lesson In Crime", elicited raves from Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, Interview, Blender, and Nylon, among others. Since then, Tokyo Police Club have been touring virtually nonstop, pausing only to release last year's "Smith" EP and the digital-only single, "Your English Is Good." Now Ontario's favorite sons offer their first full-length, Elephant Shell.

Track Listing

1. Centennial
2. In a Cave
3. Graves
4. Juno
5. Tessellate
6. Sixties Remake
7. The Harrowing Adventures of...
8. Nursery Academy
9. Your English Is Good
10. Listen to the Math
11. The Baskervilles

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12490 in Music
• Released on: 2008-04-22
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Enhanced
• Dimensions: .28 pounds

Customer Reviews

Great band, good first full length album
I absolutely love Tokyo Police Club's 7 song EP "A Lesson in Crime." It was 20 some odd minutes of upbeat, lyrically clever, singalong fun.

The album "Elephant Shell" is good, but doesn't reach the compact, joyous heights of the EP. And yet, it still deserves four stars -- just bear with me.

I'm at my tenth listen and have identified why the album didn't hit me as hard on the first few listens. Mainly, the vocals are not processed on this recording. The lead singer is good, but one of the things that added to the edge and energy of the EP was the distortion on his voice. (Some songs used it just on the chorus, others had it all the way through.) Here, his voice is clean throughout, which lessens the intensity of some of the songs. It wouldn't be very noticeable, except that there also aren't as many moments of backing vocals here either (the EP had shouts of glee sprinkled throughout, along with great use of clapping).

I also think Tessellate would make a better opener, with Sixties Remake a sensible #2. From there, the tracks could follow in order. (And if that's not an extremely obnoxious thing for a review to suggest, then I don't know what is.)

Tessellate, Sixties Remake, Centennial, Juno, and In a Cave are highlights, along with the previously released Your English is Good (from a 2 song EP -- it sounds more like the original EP then anything else on the new album).

I realize this review seems to pit 2 albums against one another, and that it seems really negative, but I'm actually quite excited by what band has done so early in what I hope will be a long career. Give them a shot!

Great album - sophisticated and energetic
Elephant Shell finds Tokyo Police Club balancing their 'pulsate with purpose' driving sound with a smoother sense of transition, greater range, and more consistent focus. They still rock, and still change things up to keep things interesting, but those differences flow better. Some may like that, some not. :)

Like others have mentioned, I think Elephant Shell stands up a bit better to repeat listening.

great
I really like the music presented on Elephant Shell. The guitar playing is superb, the vocals are quite catchy and fun, and there's just an energetic and pleasant overall feeling to the mood and style these guys are going for. I recommend Tokyo Police Club to anyone who's interested in music that's instantly memorable.