The Furniture Moves Underneath (Drip Audio)

Despite the cozy home depicted on its cover, there’s nothing terribly inviting about Inhabitants’ latest indie-jazz affair. The seven-song disc finds the Vancouver quartet laying down some seriously depressing jams. Wah-wah-heavy guitar squealing and freeform drum seizures chaotically kick “Kurt’s Dirt” into overdrive, but the eight-minute song—and in effect the rest of the CD—eventually settles into its dark, brooding mood.

JP Carter’s trumpet slides uneasily among the brushed snares of “Sad Friend”, a disturbingly sexy tune likely spinning in Twin Peaks’ Black Lodge jukebox. A country-and-western melody is quickly abandoned in favour of Pete Schmitt’s jittered bass groove on “The Rancher”. Though not without its tender moments, the four-piece finds itself more often than not drawn to all things dour. Led by Carter’s horn, both plaintive and weeping at this point, the epic album closer, “Drop Descender”, careens headfirst into a sorrowful sound, capping the disc with its most depressing moment. As much of a downer as it is, The Furniture Moves Underneath finds Inhabitants mastering the gloomier side of jazz.