The duo of Handsome Furs began as an idea in the winter of 2005, comprised of Vancouver residents Dan Boeckner (Wolf Parade) and his fiancée, Alexei Perry. Dark and minimal while noisy and earnest, the point was to be as sparse and repetitive as possible with the help of little more than vocals, guitars, and a new drum machine. Through this, songs of earthbound captains, eggs made of gold and iron, and sleepless bodies were born. Boeckner’s disenchanted vocals thinly resonate while cloaked in a frenzied undertone of fear and uncertainty, all punctuated by bare drum machine beats. Through the course of each track, a deep-seated sense of longing struggles with staunch realism as a restless disdain for both urban life and smaller towns collide. Handsome Furs toured Europe before writing any songs. They have since opened for the likes of David Cross and Modest Mouse before releasing a proper record. Recorded at Wolf Parade’s studio, Mount Zoomer, in the heart of December, Plague Park is their debut. It is a record of melancholic tendency and heartfelt desire; a stripped-down symphony roaming between city and country, and made for ears of either side.