An ear to the north leads to an album that has me simultaneously looking ahead and thinking back. These Canadian rockers have my toes tapping and my mind wishing it was summer with a collection of tunes that transport me two decades in the rearview. Power pop wrapped inside a heavy dose of infectious alternative rock, these 11 tracks wouldn't have sounded out of place on mainstream radio around the turn of the century.

Hotel Mira hail from British Columbia, and not only have band members come and gone, but after being known as JPNSGRLS since 2013, leader Charlie Kerr up and changed their name. Two years ago the band released a statement saying Hotel Mira "reflects the dirty-slick direction the music is going in." I cannot say definitively that they are now named after what Tripadvisor lists as the 568th best hotel in Prague (out of 667). Based on that ranking and the group's description, I'd say there's a better than zero chance. Ale, možná čtu mezi řádky.

Following a 2018 EP, Perfectionism checks in as their first LP under Hotel Mira. It's certainly worthy of a higher rating than its Bohemian counterpart, which a quick Google search reveals is now "permanently closed." While things might have gotten a little too dirty in Praha 4, this is one slick grand opening for Vancouver's Hotel Mira.