Future Princes of post-rock, or good-natured, well-intentioned Minnesotans? The Plastic Constellations are a polarizing force amongst fans of the genre, even within one individual fan.

I had only ever vaguely heard of their first album, Mazatlan, never actually getting around to picking it up. The reason for that was that I had heard from some that they were really fantastic, while others insisted that they were a downright awful post-rock pretender. However, when Crusades came out, I heard a better buzz about them, and the fact that they were now calling French Kiss home (sharing space with bands like The Hold Steady, Les Savy Fav, Ex-Models and The Detachment Kit) indicated that maybe, just maybe, some of my friends had been flat-out wrong in their assertion of TPC and their talents. Boy, oh boy, am I glad like hell that I decided to give this one a go...it may not be a perfect album that will go down in the annals of history as a definitive musical moment, but it is very good.

One of the things that seems to bother people more than anything else about TPC is that the dual-guitars don't always necessarily seem to be headed in the same direction. I guess it's because I'm damn-near legally deaf, but I haven't been able to catch that particular bit of inconsistency. The guitar-work is sloppy and overly aggressive at times, yes...but unfocused composition? Not so much. No one is going to accuse these boys of channeling Steven Pederson, and I'm sure that they themselves would admit that. The thing is, for the music they're playing and the level of emotion that they're conveying (to say nothing of subject matter), this is exactly the type of noodling that needs to take place. If it were much cleaner, I don't think it would be as affecting as it is. The music on Crusades is hard, it's rough and it's panicked. I'd waste our time with pointing out a dozen other bands that do this very thing, but it would accomplish nothing. Sorry to the drummer and the bassist for spending so much time on the guitars, but it's something that needed to be gone over. Your work is buttery smooth. Promise.

The opener, “Phoenix and The Faultline” will quickly introduce you to some of the themes that run throughout Crusades – a vaguely Medieval setting and taking a stand against beasts and enemies unknown (though openly using the characters Don Quixote and Sancho Panza clearly indicates that this is allegory for something a little more prevalent). Lyrically, this album tells a story that pays homage to myth and fantasy novels that surely played a role in the development of TPC as a band as individuals (maybe next time they're in town, I'll ask them if they want to roll up some characters and down a few pints of meade?). As to whether or not they're referencing things more dangerous, sinister and political (as many bands seem to be doing these days), I'll leave that for you to decide...but I wouldn't say it would require a great stretch of the imagination. There are a few songs in particular that combine strong music and even stronger words that the listener can't help but be grabbed by, “Best Things”, “Quixote” and “Belly Of The Beast” stand out in this regard.

There are definite miss-moments on Crusades, both lyrically and musically, but that's true of any album. For TPC, the hits outweigh those misses in spades. The only real problem with this album is that it's just plain too short. My suggestion? Listen to it twice instead of just once and you'll be okay. In a time where Cursive is nowhere to be found, Criteria has released a sub-par album, Bear vs Shark has gone the way of the birds and the other genre stars are doing more and more of the same, TPC may be stepping in to fill the void and carry rock ala post into the future on the backs of their personal – and slain – beasts.