Pot Calls Kettle Black

Thomas D'Arcy and the band ventured to Chicago to work with producer/engineer John McEntire (Tortoise/Sea and Cake). The result is an album that draws the listener in with stunning mood and melody, yet invokes heightened soul and energy thanks to the full band format. From the first strains of the title track, it's apparent that D'Arcy's newfound confidence as a songwriter has pushed him into new territory sonically, and that the band was indeed, as D'Arcy puts it, "in Type A mode for 10 hours every day." At turns sultry ("Where There's Gold," "Tonight"), slinky (the electrofunk of "Déjà Vu," featuring guest rapper k-os; the staccato stomp of "Till I Go Home") and haunting (the hushed, contemplative "Everything You Need" and "You Will Lie," which feature John Obercian on brushed drums), Pot Calls Kettle Black marries the intimacy of Small Sins' first album with the experimentation of Mood Swings, emerging as a proof of a band that's truly found its voice.