The last time we heard from Parlour was in 2005 with their Hives Fives EP. They gave us their first taste of an expanded 7-piece lineup that included founder and original sole member Tim Furnish on guitar, plus another guitar, bass guitar, clarinet, bass clarinet, saxophone, keyboards and drums. It was a wild and exuberant live display, watching and listening to a small army turn a confined space into a boundless playground. And then, nothing for five years; no new recordings and fewer than a dozen live performances. We now realize they weren't inactive, they were just scheming. Simulacrenfield rearranges the vision set forth in previous Parlour releases, utilizing the septet for all it's worth. The songs are tighter, heavier, and more melodically ... read more