It Will Come to You [White Vinyl]

Vancouver-based post-punk/darkwave outfit Actors have made waves on the independent scene in their native British Columbia as well as Canada and the U.S. throughout the late 2010s, and here they deliver their first full-length, It Will Come to You. Channeling the dulcet yet somewhat deadpan tones of Suicide's Alan Vega throughout, frontman Jason Corbett croons over tracks such as opener "L'Appel du Vide," with its reverberated guitar leads and tightly wound snare drum, and the swaggering "Hit to the Head," which delivers rigid basslines, delayed vocal cries, and bright synths that decorate the mix. Lyrically, the record traverses the familiar subject matter of acts such as Bauhaus and Joy Division -- consistently gloomy yet romantic, with such feelings of despair and tragedy disguised with sleek, crystalline production and deceivingly benevolent melodies laced with an undercurrent of melancholy and lament. The group's influences are stark and clear -- there are many other bands that have done the same kind of thing, but it's sure to say that Actors aren't just a pale imitation of what inspires them so vividly, instead fully tipping their hat to such inspirations while firmly keeping their fingers on the sound of alternative music in the new millennium. Also owing a debt to the sound of other new wave-influenced acts such as Hurts and White Lies, It Will Come to You doesn't break new ground, but it's a great listen and does exactly what it says on the tin. ~ Rob Wacey