In their relatively brief existence as a band, Pardoner went quickly from local fame to wider appreciation; releasing an album with Father/Daughter and Pitchfork recognition by 2017. They’re one of the most celebrated San Francisco bands of the last half-decade. And now they’re back with new album Peace Loving People.
Pardoner is described by their label as having an “angular weirdness” and by Stereogum as “indie rock classicists”, but neither of those descriptors quickly and neatly sum them up. Musically speaking, they never stay in one place too long. While they’re not wildly detouring into disparate genres like flamenco or something, they do constantly exhibit a surprising duality: They’re somehow gritty and fuzzy but arrestingly melodic at the same time. This is made explicit on the single “Are You Free Tonight?” – after meandering in typical verse-chorus-verse construction for a minute, it veers abruptly into the kind of thrashing balls-to-the-wall punk you’d expect from them. OK – maybe that’s the angle they were talking about.
