12

Editors' Notes After 27 years and 12 albums together, you can’t blame Canadian alt-pop kings Sloan for getting a little self-deprecating: “There’s only so much time we can kill here/Before we start to spin our wheels,” Chris Murphy sings on 12’s opener. But spinning their wheels clearly isn’t part of the plan. With each member contributing three songs here, Sloan's tight-hooked power pop is a well-oiled—but constantly evolving—machine. Stomping guitar rock (“All of the Voices”) and jaunty Beatlesque pop (“Essential Services”) might provide 12’s through-line, but check out “Gone for Good” for an excursion into languid '70s soft rock and “44 Teenagers” for a Pink Floyd-style meditation on Tragically Hip singer Gord Downie’s passing.