Who Needs Who (Bonus Track Version)

Never the sunniest band on the block, Dark Dark Dark probes new depths of disillusionment on Who Needs Who, an album reflecting on the romantic breakup of members Nona Marie Invie and Marshall LaCount. Remarkably, the Minneapolis quintet pulled together to record this poignant song cycle with its trademark musical finesse intact. Invie’s confessional lyrics shift between past and present with cinematic jump-cut effects, catching the right note of fragile dignity amid her accounts of love and loss. Mark Trecka’s subtle yet driving percussion and Walt McClements’ bittersweet trumpet are crucial, as is LaClount’s bruise-tender clarinet work. As lead singer, Invie radiates a wounded charisma on tracks like “Last Time I Saw Joe,” “Patsy Cline," and “It’s a Secret,” revealing deep emotional fissures behind her surface reserve. The ragtag horns in the title tune and the slinky bass and accordion in “Without You” help lighten the album’s downbeat mood. “The Great Mistake” closes Who Needs Who on a note of acceptance (if not forgiveness), suggesting that there’s life beyond heartbreak.