THE LEAGUE OF ONE – Dispatch

Featuring an odd blend of early Rush and mid-90s Pop Punk influences, Dispatch from Canadian rockers The League Of One, is a heartfelt, if not top quality, ride through the minds of three of Canada’s weirdest and most devoted musicians. When a band is getting around to releasing their 2nd album, a full 15 years after the band’s founding, you know that they’re in this for the long haul.

This ten track musical journey features some fan favorite lyric themes like drugs, inside jokes, and playing in a band. “Wax Museum” kicks things off with some shades of REM and some downright righteous down picking. The next track, “Plastic Crackhead” has the listener wondering just how much of the lyrics are autobiographical, but by the time “I Get Around” comes up, it can be pretty much assured that The League Of One is just engaging in some good ‘ol fashioned poetic exploration.

While Dispatch is by no means a carefully calculated and fully fleshed out release, the album’s no nonsense production quality and the genuine, earnest delivery of the performances keeps the songs interesting throughout the full running time. It can’t be denied that the band might be suffering from a lack of inspiration, most notably on the tracks “Koolaid And Bug Burgers” and “Bic Blister”, but this is the kind of album that can just be taken at face value, and really has no desire or requirement to be considered anything more than “art”.