Born Ruffians are the latest signings to the good ship Warp. An indie-guitar band who sound like the missing link between The Shins and Vampire Weekend. These guys know how to have a good time and then write songs about it after the event.

Their newest album Say It open s with “Oh Man”, a jagged romp that finds singer/ guitarist Luke Lalonde shaking his head at a romantic fool, and trying to steer him right. The parts hang together, a clattering machine bonded by a combination of kinetic energy and unshakeable confidence. In recording the album in just two weeks, the band teamed up again with producer Rusty Santos (Animal Collective, Panda Bear, Owen Pallett). The Ruffians and co. holed themselves up at Mississauga’s Metalworks studio and loosened the reins on their ambitions, experimenting with Minimoogs and saxophones before eventually scaling much of it back in the mixing process. Bassist Mictch De Rosier says, “I think it was important that we did that, adding things just to hear how they sounded.”

The result is an album further amplifying the band’s unique voice and sound, a progression that sees the colour, energy and youthfulness presented in Red, Yellow & Blue channeled into songs stamped with their inimitable fun style, an album that will take them as far as Born Ruffians want to go. And they will go far. All the way to Winnipeg.

Born Ruffians website • myspace

Young Rival website • myspace