of Montreal Album: “The Gay Parade”

Of Montreal has built a career on exuberant, sweet concept albums that bounce with life and love. "The Gay Parade" is a snapshot of them at their best -- it has the strangeness of "Cocquelicot," but is more accessable. These songs cheery oddball pop, but it sounds so uncalculated that it never quite sounds twee.

The acoustic/piano-ballad "Old Familiar Way" starts off the album, but it mostly focuses on how "It's amazing the wonders you can find/Just by stepping outside." Only at the end does Kevin Barnes greet listeners with "Welcome to the Gay Parade!" The album then switches to a bunch of songs about the glorious people, such as the bouncy dancey "Fun-Loving Nun," singsong "Tulip Baroo," and "The Miniature Philosopher."

While describing boxers, grandfathers and stuttering organ grinders, Barnes and Co. don't stray away from their typical little sweet songs: there's a carnival sound to "March of the Gay Parade," a goofy little sweet song. Elsewhere Barnes sings eagerly about the "Domestic Life," longs for special friends, and chronicles the story of Niki Coco, before finally bidding farewell in "The Gay Parade Outro."

The entire album more or less revolves around the Gay Parade, and how much happier the people in it (and near it) are. The general feeling is that it's not so much a real gathering as a state of mind -- enjoying the little things, "making friends with trees and animals," and seeing the magic of the world.

The songs rely heavily on Barnes' acoustic guitar, and the sweet piano pop that comes into the intro and outro. Little chimes and psychedelic swooshes give it an even more whimsical feel. And an electric organ gives a sort of dancey fun feel to "Fun Loving Nun," to the point where it's hard to notice Barnes' weird lyrics.

Kevin Barnes has that sort of likably offbeat voice that really sounds good in oddball pop. Sort of like Jeff Mangum, but a bit less nasal. And the songwriting is either goofy ("I'd be a yellow feathered loon for you baby/Be a German shepherd on the moon for you baby") or brilliant ("He would suddenly appear at Meg's door/He'd rent a mariachi band and respectfully demand/His dear Meg to take his hand/And to be his forever more"). You make the call -- often they're both.

Somehow the most enjoyable part of the whole thing is where where Barnes solemnly informs us, "Now that you know the way/And perhaps someday/You'll be able to stay with us/Forever inside the gay parade." In other words, hit repeat.

The first few times you listen to this album, it's hard not to compare it to some of the psychadelic/pop bands of the 60's. This in itself makes it a good album from the get go. However, after repeated listens, you start to realize and hear all of the concepts and experimentation behind the songs that make just about all of them great. Some of the highlights include "Old Familiar Way", "Fun Loving Nun", "Tulip Baroo", "The Autobiographical Grandpa", and "Advice From A Divorced Gentleman." They're all great songs.

Of course, I like ALL the songs (I did give it a PERFECT score after all). "Nickee Coco" is a stunning fairy tale-esque story told half in dialogue and half through singing. It makes the song hard to sing to, but a pleasure to listen to (it's also a bit humorous at times: listen for a part about an owl).

"My Favorite Boxer" is a nice guitar based pop tune about a boy's favorite boxer. What makes it so great is the sudden tempo changes, along with the beautiful harmonies.

"The March of the Gay Parade" (Kevin Barnes is trying to disregard the common misconceptions about the word) is a very experimental piece with very high pitched voices squeeking out the melody while fuzz and static are present in the background. It's weirdness makes it very fun to listen to, especially when Barnes finally begins to sing near the end (with a muffled voice echoing his own in the background).

All in all, it's the way the pop tunes, the concept of a character's story in every song, and the experimentation with instruments come together that makes this album so great. Kevin Barnes, along with everyone who helped him, has great talent for not only creating pop, but also molding his songs into something more than the term can describe. He combined 60's experimentation with 90's sensibilities. Let it be said, however, his latest works took a mighty turn away from this approach, making "The Gay Parade" all the more important. it's the pinnacle of Kevin Barnes' career, and although he has made some decent albums lately, he never catches the humor and simple charm that he does with "The Gay Parade" (with the exception of "Coquelicot"). A must buy.

This CD isn't something you'd want to listen to more than once. It's a concept CD with an idea. The music is basically here to serve the idea and not be music made up of songs that stand alone or are even "songs" in the traditional sense. I guess you need to know the band going in. I heard one song from this CD on the radio that I found interesting so I bought the CD and now I will sell the CD and not miss it at all.

This is the closest thing to the Beach Boys 'Smile' I have ever heard, yet it's something totally original and exciting. This is fantastic music, well creafted pop with catchy melodies. The songs feature characters similar to those that fill most loved songs of Paul McCartney. 'Gay Parade' is a great record. Do not live another minute without it. It will brighten your days. Thank you Of Montreal!

i love of montreal for a multitude of reasons, beginning with the quirky melodic storylines. they're the only band i've heard pull off 'cute' without 'irritating', and make narrative and fun pop so youthful but smart. hands down the best driving album i own, unfortunately i have to turn it down everytime 'it's the march of the gay parade! how nice!' is yelled -- i've been honked at for that one before. but the album is catchy, brilliant, and hilarious. their live performance is even better. for a more retro/early-beatles sounding version of of montreal, check out 'cherry peel', and if you're not quoting 'tim wish you were born a girl' for weeks - well, then something's wrong with you.