Tons of hypothetical bands are formed every day. Kids sitting around at school and in their parents' basements come up with fake band names, cover art, you name it. Handsome Furs took it one step further, booking an entire European tour without having written a song. Of course, the Furs had reason to be optimistic, the band is made up of Dan Boeckner of Wolf Parade (the only band in the world that could be described as prolific despite having released only one album), and his fiance Alexei Perry.

The resulting album is Plague Park, one of the most fleshed out minimalist albums in recent memory. The album relies solely on guitar, a drum machine and a variety of synthesized noises, but comes across as a meticulously constructed and well thought out piece of work. It seems there's nothing that Handsome Furs aren't willing to try, from the overpowering noisiness of 'Hearts of Iron' to the infectious dance beat of 'Cannot Get Started.'

The one artist that keeps coming to mind when listening to Plague Park is Beck. Boeckner owes a lot to him vocally, and in some cases is an absolute dead ringer for him, like on 'Sing! Captain.' Mostly, though, Beck's philosophy of no genre being untouchable is what Handsome Furs exhibit most fiercely, and they pull it off with a surprisingly deft touch.