Elephant Shell is the Canadian-pop sensation, Tokyo Police Club’s, first full length album set to be released late this April. The small group, composed of four members, have been hard at work in the studio under their new label, Saddle Creek Records, creating blessed music for your ears. And I must say, they’ve certainly done a great job.

This newest album is a lot of what you’d expect from Tokyo Police Club but you can certainly hear a huge growth of maturity from the boys. Elephant Shell definitely sounds a lot more like an actual album than just a compilation of demos. Everything is crisper, cleaner, and clearer than it was in A Lesson in Crime. Their new sound is a lot less “punk” and everything is much more relaxed. It’s not going to put you to sleep, but it’s not going to pump you up either. Elephant Shell eased off the gas pedal and decided to cruise along while A Lesson in Crime is more concerned about speeding past you; leaving you in a cloud of dust.

Dave Monks’ (lead vocals) voice is now very soothing in his own, unique and shockingly, a little feminine, way. In the first track, “Centennial”, you may be a little surprised to notice that Monks’ testicles are actually quite possibly..ascending? But not to fear, just like a thirteen year-old boy going through puberty, his voice slowly starts to enter manhood throughout the album’s tracks. Overall, the whole CD sounds a little the same but this is a positive for someone who really enjoys their stuff. All-in-all, no complaints here.