Wilderness Years

Don't you miss the '90s, relative financial stability, Kevin Arnold and Winnie Cooper proving that teenage love can be pure and wholesome, and those days when scuzzy, lo-fi acts worked without pretence? A few spins of Pioneers (the debut from East Vancouver, BC foursome Wilderness Years) proves they miss the '90s as much as the next lo-fi sentimentalist. Their ramshackle, yet enthusiastically warm, approach pays sonic homage to '90s lo-fi mainstays, but the way that "Great Game" shuffles without remorse demonstrates that Wilderness Years aren't all that concerned about doing right by those very mainstays. The tempos throughout Pioneers rarely gain enough steam to get your blood flowing, but it's their careless drawl, heard in spades on "Rake's Progress," which serves them rather well. "Everyone Except For You" and "A Field Day for the Therapists" don't so much as move as plod with remarkable efficiency. Whatever Wilderness Years lack in excitement, they more than make up for with their ear for stoic, fuzz-heavy grooves. The '90s might be dead and gone, but the palpable apathy and muffled pop sensibilities that went along with them are alive and well on Pioneers. Wait for a lazy, rainy Sunday afternoon, roll your last joint, welcome Wilderness Years in and get a little nostalgic.