The Gubernatorial Candidates, in keeping with the styles of their home of New Orleans, are a unusual brew of jazz, blues and the dark stuff. From the first song to the last song, it feels as if there's more than one band in operation but then that it is high praise for a band who manage to shift from a countrified beginning to a post-rock denouement in such a seamless fashion. 'Des Allemands' is the first sign of the eerie nature of this record as some dusty guitars are gradually usurped by a troubled funk/post-punk concoction. From similarly minimalist beginnings, 'Je Suis Le Grand Zombi' segues into a Piano Magic-like maelstrom of miserablist noise. The guitars and ghostly harmonies on 'Letters Of Marque' are wonderfully hypnotic whilst The final act is a downbeat, haunting dedication to Van Morrison. Despite the bleak air of this short album, the neat gear shifts and sinister atmospheres make it one of the most refreshingly different releases of modern times.