Like THE WHITE ALBUM without all the bad vibes. Or maybe ABBEY ROAD without that damn "Maxwell's Silver Hammer."

When you think about it, Sloan's new record, NEVER HEAR THE END OF IT, sounds kinda terrible. Almost 80 minutes. Thirty songs -- some not much more than fragments. All strung together like the second side of The Beatles' ABBEY ROAD.

Uhhhh, no thanks.

But when you actually listen to the thing, it works really well. Much well-er than it has any right to. Some of the shorter stuff seems more like ideas than songs, and the non-stop sequencing borders on sensory overload. But there's some really great music to be had here. "Ill-Placed Trust" particularly stands out these days (a song the band was playing live as early as 1992).

Last week, Sloan played in Carrboro at Cat's Cradle, three years to the day from their last area show. Stuff from the new CD was played in three-to-four song medleys, retaining the feel of the studio stuff. The energy these guys bring to the usual bus-club-bus grind is nothing short of incredible. Young bands -- and certainly all the older, Corporate Rock dudes -- should see Sloan do their thing. And take copious notes.

Anyway, these guys rock, carrying the Power Pop banner almost single-handedly. God bless 'em! And it's great to see a crowd of people showing up on a Monday night to cheer them on. After all, if they can ride down here from Canada, we can at least hop across town to hear 'em.

(Here in the States, NEVER HEAR THE END OF IT's on Yep Roc Records. It's run by a couple guys I went to high school with, Glenn and Tor. With Dave Alvin, Nick Lowe, Sloan and the mighty John Doe on their label, these guys are certainly doing something right.)