Ra Ra Riot - The Rhumb Line

The tragic death of drummer, John Pike, makes Ra Ra Riot's The Rhumb Line debut album "The Rhumb Line" newsworthy in itself. There is obvious irony in the single "Dying is Fine," which was written before Pike's death, but the album as a piece of art makes a solid and important statement by itself.

I think Kyle Anderson of Rolling Stone said it best when describing their sound: "Ra Ra Riot combine Arcade Fire's orchestral reveries with Vampire Weekend's pop sensibility." Violinist, Rebecca Zeller, and Cellist, Alexandra Lawn are the foundation of the pop-iest orchestra this side of Win Butler's. Vampire Weekend's Rostam Batmanglij even tweaked Ra Ra Riot's "Can You Tell."

All in all "Rhumb Line" is a fantastic debut album from a band who has been popular in the blog-o-sphere for quite some time. A very captivating summer pop album, after each listen you'll have trouble pinpointing your favorite track.

Here is my current favorite track:
Boomp3.com