So much of the past decade’s best music seem to follow a trend of incorporating a largely folk or country influence into the alternative music scene. Bands like Fleet Foxes and Band of Horses are a couple of the more notable names that embrace the down-home vocal twang and organic, acoustic-based, organ-supported songwriting nature that is synonymous with these genres.Yukon Blonde‘s 2010 self-titled, full length debut follows a similar trend. The Vancouver band joins the ranks of the previously mentioned bands with a similar ideology, and this release justifies the comparisons, but also establishes important stylistic differences.The brunt of their songs ditch an emphasis on big guitar riffs, or any instrumental hook for that matter, and focus on strong vocal and melody construction. The lead single “Wind Blows” exemplifies the melodic prowess of this band with a memorable vocal laced with concise harmony that is immediately reminiscent of Fleet Foxes‘ ”White Winter Hymnal”.However, this band is hardly a duplicate of their contemporaries. The instrumental production motifs run consistent throughout the record with glossy, electric-guitars arpeggiating underneath the powerful vocals and lush synths. Also, Yukon Blonde isn’t afraid of fuzzing through guitar solos at rare moments in the record, avoiding a stagnant, reoccurring song structures.While “Wind Blows” draws notice as the lead single, “Brides Song” poses as the best representation for the album, as Yukon Blonde sets themselves from these obvious comparisons, shining a greater influence of classic rock/pop bands (i.e. Fleetwood Mac) than country or folk. As the album progresses Yukon Blonde makes it clear that they are a pop group, making themselves accessible in a potentially alienating genre.While most of the songs on the record are memorable, some of which are better that others (like “Blood Cops”, “Trivial Fires” or the two I mentioned earlier), the final tracks of the record lose some of the momentum generated by the early tracks. While they don’t deviate stylistically or provide a deterrent from appreciating the rest of the record, they do pose as a mediocre way of ending an admirably strong debut.WIth the release of this record, Yukon Blonde is worth being associated with elite musical company. While they’re aren’t as dominant or consistently brilliant as the leaders of the genre, Yukon Blonde certainly leave a positive impression, on their first try no less, with one of the better records to come out of Vancouver in the last few years.Words: Jamie Cessford