The Pack a.d. - Dollhouse (2017)

The Pack A.D. have had one of the most underappreciated careers in Canadian music. For a decade, the duo of Becky Black (guitar/vocals) and Maya Miller (drums/vocals) have been traversing the country’s ten provinces and three territories. From big festivals to the most ragged dive bar, they’ve brought their electrifying garage-rock to the people. It all started with 2006’s Tintype and 2008’s Funeral Mixtape. The Vancouver band reached their peak in 2010 and 2011 with We Kill Computers and Unpersons, which were heavy, gritty, and menacing in their approach.

Their last two albums, Do Not Engage and Positive Thinking, were their most polished of their careers and, as such, more accessible. While there were some gems in the two records, the attitude and bite in their music that made them cult favorites were missing. On album number seven, Dollhouse, The Pack A.D. return to their roots and deliver their best effort in six years. It is also their most diverse output to date.

The bookends provide the perfect encapsulation of what the record possesses and its introspective tone. Opener, “Woke Up Weird”, is a dark, throbbing anthem that recalls the gritty garage-rock of the early 2000s. Black’s vocals are enrapturing, and her lyrics of being strange and unusual set the tone for the entire record. The closer, “I Tried”, reveals a different side to the duo, who showcase a bluesy side a la Buddy Guy. This tender ballad builds on “Woke Up Weird” with its story of struggling to get through each day and the competition that exists within today’s society.