Pitchfork: A Northern Chorus LP Out Next Month

You've probably heard in the news that U.S. requests for Canadian citizenship have not abated in recent months. Think ineptitude in the executive branch of government is to blame? Well, that's one theory, but we're betting it's more to do with the recent surge of great and diverse indie bands from the North: The thumping synth and gorgeous cries of Metric; the inspired and critically adored Arcade Fire; and in the dreamy, orchestral pop department, there's A Northern Chorus, whose third album, Bitter Hands Resign, will be available in the U.S. through the Sonic Unyon label on May 3. The addition of cellist Alex McMaster adds yet another dimension to their layered pop sound, and these eight tracks may feel like fifteen, but we swear it's just eight:

01 The Shepherd and the Chauffeur
02 Subjects & Matter
03 This Open Heart
04 Watershed Divide
05 Prisoners of Circumstance
06 Costa del Sol
07 Don't Think of Collapse
08 Winterize

Meanwhile, A Northern Chorus' official website reports that the band's first album, Before We All Go to Pieces, originally released under Black Mountain Music, has been re-pressed and packaged in a neat little tin box for rerelease. They're hawking that as well as Bitter Hands Resign on a brief tour of the Motherland and the U.S.:

04-26 Calgary, Alberta - Broken City (w/ Beneath Augusta)
04-27 Canmore, Alberta - The Canmore Hotel
05-01 Vancouver, British Columbia - Media Club
05-02 Kelowna, British Columbia - The Verve
05-06 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan - Amigo's
05-08 Winnipeg, Manitoba - Collective Cabaret
05-10 Chicago, IL - Empty Bottle
05-11 Bowling Green, OH - Howards Club H (w/ Sangsara)
05-13 Toledo, OH - Mickey Finn's (w/ An Infinite Number of Sounds)
05-14 Pittsburgh, PA - Garfield Artworks
05-15 Arlington, VA - Galaxy Hut
05-18 New York, NY - Knitting Factory