“I’d Rather Dance With You”
from the album Riot on an Empty Street
2004
[iTunes]
You can watch the video of “I’d Rather Dance With You” for free at the iTunes Music Store
Forget the headphones. You can blast the new Kings of Convenience album as much as you want and the neighbors will never complain. Yes, it’s that hushed. With Riot on an Empty Street, Eirik Glambek Boe and Erlend Oye, Norway’s kings of fey indie pop (with due apologies to wunderkind Sondre Lerche), deliver on the promise of their 2001 Astralwerks debut, Quiet is the New Loud. That album’s title is still their beloved mantra here, but happily the duo has returned with a keen sense of variety and livelier instrumentation while continuing to highlight their lilting harmonies. In fact, the two men’s voices mesh so succinctly and warmly, you could mistake Kings of Convenience for a knockoff of Simon and Garfunkel — circa “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme” — as one friend surmised upon first listen. But songs such as “Live Long,” with its bright trombone notes, contrast a sunny side to the rainy-day fare; even the few attempts to sound peppy work nicely, particularly the bouncy “I’d Rather Dance With You.” Out of the blue, Leslie Feist of Broken Social Scene provides extra vocals, and she’s used to minimal but optimal effect. After you’ve listened to the disc, one particular line from the opening track, “Homesick,” seems prophetic: “But I can’t stop listening to the sound of two soft voices blended in perfection.” ~ James Reed, Boston Globe
 Kings of Convenience |