Send "The Kissaway Trail " Ringtones to your Cell 
| Pitchfork |
 The Kissaway Trail's 2007 self-titled debut album had a nervy energy typical of indie rock traditionalists like British Sea Power and the Shout Out Louds, but while the ideas weren't groundbreaking, the band at least sounded like it was trying to create, rather than simply emulate. On the Danish quintet's Sleep Mountain, that is hardly the case. From the palm-muted chords and chiming bells that kick the album off, the Arcade Fire's influence stains this record to the point of unintentional parody. If you think it's a coincidence, note that there is actually an accordion-festooned, we're-all-in-this-together shout-along called (wait for it) "Don't Wake Up".Sleep Mountain's unoriginality is made worse by the fact that few of its songs actually go anywhere. Themes recycle themselves without providing much in the way of progression, and the few effective ideas, like the looped percussive beat in "Painter" or the new-wave romanticism of "Beat Your Heartbeat", are undercooked and underrealized. It's not like the Kissaway Trail are working under strict time constraints, either-- almost every song that makes up the record's 55-minute length runs past the four-minute mark. Those who brave the record's turgid front end, however, will be treated to Sleep Mountain's more interesting portion. The tangled guitar lines and mixed-back shouts on "Whirr of Wings" are faintly evocative of the better parts of 1990s emo, and despite a funereal accordion making another appearance, "New Lipstick" hits with a broad pop appeal reminiscent of their fellow countrymen, the underrated Figurines. It's entirely possible, however, that listeners won't even make it to these brief shining moments-- there is a cover of Neil Young's "Philadelphia" in their way....full text |
| Guardian |
| On its release in 2007, the Kissaway Trail's debut album won almost universal comparisons with the Flaming Lips and Arcade Fire. You would think the Danish quintet might have spent the time since honing a more individual sound – and maybe they did, because there is an early version of this album that was discarded entirely. What they're actually releasing is passionate, urgent, full of music that swoops with the geometric elegance of flocking birds, but shows scant evidence of original thinking. The pealing bells and romantic piano of SDP, the militaristic drums of Friendly Fire, the choral vocals: all are achingly familiar. There's even a song called Don't Wake Up, a kind of optimistic rewrite of Arcade Fire's Wake Up. None of this is bad, but nor does it feel significant, which is a problem when the band's default mode is histrionic. That the most interesting track – the fragile, gurgling Philadelphia – is a cover version only adds to the irony....full text |
| Bbc |
| It’s been three years since The Kissaway Trail’s beguiling eponymous debut, and in that time the Danes have simplified their sound. Maturity has focused their vision, and this is both good and… not bad as such, just a shame. Sleep Mountain shimmers throughout. The quintet has gone for big, they’ve gone for anthemic, and they’ve pulled it off. Perhaps touring with Editors has made a difference – there’s certainly a streamlined feel to this album, and a cohesion, that the band’s debut lacked. It could well push them on to Editors-sized sales and stages. But this isn’t so much a new sound as a tweak of the old, taking the sky-scraping, dream-like moments of Smother + Evil = Hurt and filling them out. To a large degree, this change must be down to producer Peter Katis, the man responsible for making Interpol, The Twilight Sad and The National reverberate in widescreen. Indeed, once you start listening for his influence, Sleep Mountain comes across like a sibling to The National’s Boxer. For the first time, The Kissaway Trail’s rhythm section comes alive, and Rune Pedersen (bass) and Hasse Mydtskov (drums) clearly love every minute of it, infusing Sleep Mountain with richness and muscle....full text |
The Kissaway Trail lyrics
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