Review: I'm From Barcelona - Let Me Introduce My Friends

29 is a magic number for I'm From Barcelona.

For the Bitchfork literate amongst our readers, you're probably familiar with the Swedish collective and their glowing review from a few months back (their 8.4 can be found here). For others, let me give you a brief intro.

I'm From Barcelona is a band consisting of 29 members, based out of Jonkoping, Sweden that records with the following laundry list of instruments: clarinets, saxophones, flutes, trumpets, banjos, accordions, kazoos, guitars, drums, & keyboards.

While the seemingly absurd number of band members may sound a little gimmicky, I'm From Barcelona has very little in common with fellow 20-plus membered, The Polyphonic Spree. While TPS describes themselves as 'choral symphonic rock', I'm From Barcelona would fit much better in the category of, simply, indie-pop.

Let Me Introduce My Friends is the band's first LP, and it's spectacular. Whereas The Polyphonic Spree's tracks can escalate towards 6, 7 or 8 minutes in length, the vast majority of I'm From Barcelona's tunes are just around three minutes. For those aching for a reference point, try to imagine The Shins, Belle & Sebastian, Eels and M. Ward trapped on one everlasting road trip across the country. All that plus a healthy dose of high school choir to boot. It's glorious, trust me.

The album's strongest tracks, 'We're From Barcelona', 'Barcelona Loves You' and my personal favorite 'Chicken Pox' truly hint at greatness on already dazzling debut. The choruses are hook-laden, the marriage between all the instruments is heavenly and the vocal harmonies are inimitable.

Let Me Introduce My Friends just got its US release (finally!) this past Tuesday, nearly a full year after it was unleashed overseas. Purchase it here or sample tracks via the band's MySpace page by following this link.