Sunset Rubdown Random Spirit Lover

Words: Robbie Mackey
Label: Jagjaguwar
XLR8R Rating: 8/10

At what point does a side-hustle become a main gig? If it’s after the b-team releases a record that outshines everything the first-string ever did, then Spencer Krug’s marquee band isn’t Wolf Parade any more. Meet the frontman for Sunset Rubdown, whose latest 50-minute epic takes knotty indie rock to the 16th century (“The Courtesan”), uses it to battle vampires (“The Mending of the Gown”), score a Krueger flick (“Colt Stands Up”), and show prog a thing or two about restraint (the rest). Indeed, Random Spirit Lover does all that and so much more, dwarfing Wolf Parade’s scruffy Can-rock in the process, and easily cementing Sunset Rubdown as Krug’s most shining success.