Hailing from Portland, Oregon, Aan is an experimental pop band who mix richly textured guitars and acerbic lyrics with sugary three-part harmonies and sprawling soundscapes. Aan's blend of discordance and harmony has earned the group touring support with alt rock juggernauts like The Smashing Pumpkins and indie legends Built to Spill...

Aan are an acquired taste. Some might not get on with the way that the vocals can at times be off key with the instruments, but tracks like 'Daylight' illustrate that they can do standard run-of-the-mill conformist pop when it suits them.

But, stick with it and the rewards are well worth it. There's a rich vein of talent here that is well and truly mined over the album's 9 tracks (43 min). There's no formulaic nonsense here, each track is as individual as the next. When it comes to writing, Aan don't like you to get too comfortable with their style, and it's this effort that will ensure that fans are constantly stimulated by the band's output.

The last two songs on the album 'Somewheres Sunshine' and 'Weirdo' were my personal favourite tracks. I particularly loved the vocal distortion and chord changes on 'Weirdo'.

7

Nick Smithson