Paul Price, the international squash champion turned singer, writer, and rocker, is saying farewell to 2011 and setting himself up for a bright and busy 2012 with the release of his first album in over two years. The culmination of over a year of recording, re-recording, and bouncing around between a slew of Toronto recording studios, "Better Days" features 11 new Paul Price originals, self-produced by Price and guitarist Steve Andrews, and mixed by Juno-winning engineer Laurence Currie (Sloan, Wintersleep). These recordings also mark the introduction of Price's backing band and collaborators of the past two years, affectionately referred to as The Company. While 2006's solo-effort "Thinking Like a Stranger" established Paul as a staple of the Toronto indie-rock scene and 2009's "Life Stains" EP garnered him even wider attention, particularly with the placement of the angsty rocker Her Planet in an episode of the hit MTV series "The City," "Better Days" marks a noticeably more polished and focused approach to both Price's writing and production. The album kicks off with a distant, ghostly squeal before drummer Justin Dillon takes the reigns and launches the group into Heart Way South, an anthemic rocker that quickly acquaints you with the driving energy of the band and Price's equal parts commanding and sensitive vocals. The up-beat title track Better Days is perhaps the most "radio-ready" track on the album. It's feel-good, sing-along chorus and guitar hooks are reminiscent of your favourite Gin Blossom's song, and is sure to find its way onto a few road trip playlists come summer. Take a Bow is a spacious ballad that offers a glimpse of the maturity and restraint this group is capable of. It's interesting to note that the group could be found around its hometown of Toronto playing covers of it's favourite 90's rock tracks during the recording of this album, as there is a discernibly 90's approach to what are essentially traditional 4-piece rock band productions. These arrangements fill a refreshing niche in the current indie-rock climate. The next few tracks show us just how varied Price's writing and the group's playing can get without abandoning the cohesive sound present throughout the album's entirety. I'll Take You On and Should Have Been the Last Kiss will satisfy the most discriminating rock and roll fan with blazing guitar work, thunderous drum fills, intense, yet melodic vocals, and driving bass lines. I'm Not Ready, Cassiopeia, and Don't Be So each begin with some of Price's most intimate and touching singing to date and bloom into textured and dynamic opuses, brought to full fruition by a scattering of guest appearances on piano, organ, violin, and saxophone. Float Away, Watch the World Slip Away, and I Won't Let the Stars Fade deliver mid-tempo alt-rock creations that harken back to some of Price's earlier material, but are executed in a way we've only seen on this release. Armed with these meticulously crafted pop-rock numbers, Paul Price and the Company are headed back to the place they've greatly missed throughout the production of the album--the stage. With music varied enough to guarantee something for everyone, performances and tours being planned for 2012 will no doubt be a sight to behold. If you're wise enough to get acquainted with "Better Days" before heading out to a show, you had better warm up your singing voice, as you will most definitely be needing it!