New Music: Microcastle

I’ve put off reviewing Deerhunter’s new album, Microcastle, for a while since its leak. Quality has nothing to do with this decision; it’s a great record. Instead, I was a bit troubled by the timing of the leak – it happened at the start of the summer, even before a release date (Oct. 28) was announced. I just didn’t feel good hyping something that may or may not even come out. Well, several weeks ago, the date was posted alongside the album artwork. I just couldn’t wait anymore.

The band’s previous release, Cryptograms, was a surprising high point from last year, as was its companion EP, Fluorescent Grey. Lead singer, Bradford Cox, put out a fantastic solo album (Atlas Sound, Let The Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel) early this year that will pace high on the ladder at the end of the year. Deerhunter is suddenly prolific, an improbable surprise to those who were introduced to the band through their rough 2005 self-titled debut. How they progressed from there to the beautifully polished songwriters they are now is anyone’s guess.

Enough about their backstory… How is Microcastle? Wonderful!

Like Cryptograms, Microcastle starts out with a pretty instrumental piece (“Cover Me, Slowly”) that flows into a nifty lead track. That’s pretty much where the similarities end. Sure they have those echoing sounds, vocal effects, and that propulsive drumming; but Microcastle is happier, catchier, and more listener-friendly. After listening to Cryptograms about a million times, I could probably write a dissertation about its connotations with mental illness, how each track interacts to tell a musical story, how the compositions are near perfect, etc. Sure I could do that, but here’s the catch: it took me about a million listens to be able to get it. Microcastle doesn’t need to grow on you, it’s already there.

Considering how busy Bradford Cox has been lately, it’s not really a surprise that he hands the vocal duties to guitarist Lockett Pundt for a couple songs (including the opener). Cole Alexander (from the Black Lips) also takes vocal duties for a track (Saved by Old Times), leaving Cox’s signature voice to about 3/4ths of the album. That’s okay, really, because guest vocals are a fun idea. The album is supposed to be fun: if Cryptograms was all about depression, Microcastle is all about what happens afterward.

Deerhunter just have fun with this album. “Nothing Ever Happened” explores Krautrock. The lyrics on “Agoraphobia” are so morbid, they’re silly. “Cover Me, Slowly” starts the album with a decidedly epic chord progression. “Saved By Old Times” features the line, “We were captured by Victorian vampires with elaborate designs.” Gone is the creepy weirdness so prevalent of Cryptograms and Fluorescent Grey: the band seems to have shifted their colors.

The new Deerhunter is not only fun, they know how to, well, rock. Several songs are loud and bombastic, and, dare I say it, epic. “Never Stops”, “Neither Of Us, Uncertainly”, and “Twilight At Carbon Lake” each build to grandiose finales, and the album purposefully goes through a little valley (“Calvary Scars”, “Green Jacket”, “Actavia”) in order to build up to a huge conclusion. Like U2’s best albums, Microcastle is both inspired and inspiring.

Sure, it’s not as great as Cryptograms (the best album from the recent shoegaze re-hash), but Microcastle doesn’t want to be. It’s a smart, fun, catchy pop album filled with rewarding hooks and sounds and noises. Its buildups and falldowns are emotionally affecting, and every piece works the way it should. Microcastle is one of the best records of the year.

EDIT: You can buy it on iTunes right now. Please do so... It's worth it!

New Music: At Mount Zoomer

Despite how much has happened since September 2005, Wolf Parade's debut, With Apologies To The Queen Mary still sounds fresh. At the time, it seemed Wolf Parade was just like any other band - a group of people who tour and write music together. Except there was a small difference: Wolf Parade had two songwriters; they were a sort of an indie rock Fugazi. In the three years since then, both writers (Dan Boeckner and Spencer Krug) have found their own avenues and developed their own sounds. Boeckner's Handsome Furs project features rather straightforward songwriting and song structure with little musical arrangement - just his voice and guitar over his wife's electronics. Though Handsome Furs is much better than their description sounds, it is still overshadowed by Krug's work with Sunset Rubdown, a solo outing-turned full band. Featuring three albums of complex arrangements, clever lyricism, and, well, epic bombast, Sunset Rubdown seems to have become Krug's main musical outlet (and put out one of the best 60 minutes of this generation with Random Spirit Lover).

Yes, Wolf Parade has revealed itself to be a sort of super-group. Just look at the amount of side-projects held by its members...

Spencer Krug: Sunset Rubdown, Frog Eyes, Swan Lake, Fifths of Seven
Dan Boeckner: Handsome Furs
Dante DeCaro: Hot Hot Heat, Johnny and the Moon
Hadji Bakara: Megasoid
Arlen Thompson: played drums for the Arcade Fire, though not a part of the band

Supergroups definitely have a stigma to them, and for good reason: they rarely work well together. Even when they do work well, most people would rather just listen to their members' other work. But Canadian supergroups, at least these days, seem to be an exception to the rule (see The New Pornographers, and Swan Lake), so it's necessary to keep an open mind about Wolf Parade's latest, At Mount Zoomer.



Sorry about the 300 word preamble, but it's necessary to know the facts before listening to this album. Not because it affects the listening experience, but to highlight just what an achievement this album is.



The review begins here...

Let's just get this out of the way: there is no "I'll Believe In Anything" on At Mount Zoomer. In fact, most of the pop sensibilities from With Apologies To The Queen Mary are gone. At Mount Zoomer aims for something more than just a collection of single-worthy tunes (not to take anything away from With Apologies' greatness) - this is a cohesive remark about the state of the band... They aren't going anywhere.

Opener "Soldier's Grin" may be the best song Dan Boeckner has ever written. The first half of the song gives At Mount Zoomer a sunny beginning, but it doesn't last long - "Soldier's Grin" transitions into an intense, slow-paced stomp unlike anything Boeckner or Wolf Parade have done before. Yes, Boeckner's songs are obviously his, but this is the sound of Spencer Krug at work. It's the sound of Handsome Furs and Sunset Rubdown fusing into one - the ideal Wolf Parade.

Though At Mount Zoomer features the best songs of Boeckner's career, he doesn't necessarily steal the show. Krug's writing captures the same intensity as his latest Sunset Rubdown release, Random Spirit Lover. However, these aren't the kind of masterful pop songs Krug may be best known for ("I'll Believe In Anything", "All Fires"). Instead, these are mood pieces - their dramatic stories (ranging from escape and peril to a scorned lover) give At Mount Zoomer a sort of dark energy or menace: the "take" to Boeckner's "give." Oh yeah, and his voice still sounds as if he's being strangled while singing - it's a love or hate affair.

The individual performances here mesh very well - this sounds like the work of a full-time band, not a side project. Though it's not clear which guitar is Boeckner's and which is Dante DeCaro's, it doesn't matter; the work here is masterful, validating Sub Pop's dissertation that At Mount Zoomer is this generation's Marquee Moon (by Television). Krug and Hadji Bakara's keyboards are equally impressive, and it seems by his drumming that Arlen Thompson has been listening to Sunset Rubdown (this is a good thing).

This is all well and good for the nine songs on the album; there are not very many weak points on At Mount Zoomer. The closest it comes to a let down is Krug's "California Dreamer", not because it's a bad song, but because it's exuberance doesn't seem to match the song's subject matter very well. At first listen, 10-minute closer "Kissing The Beehive" also seems like a mistake. It aims for three epic movements, but can seem impenetrable until further listens reveal all of the hooks waiting to be discovered...

In a way, "Kissing The Beehive" is a microcosm of At Mount Zoomer: it's a duet between Krug and Boeckner backed by thunderous drums, eerie keyboards, and aggressive guitar work... At least for the beginning. Soon, "Kissing The Beehive" turns into a dance-rock party fueled by a twitchy high-hat and a killer guitar riff (presumably DeCarto's - he was in Hot Hot Heat, you know). As if it was his last breath, Krug yelps, "Fire in the hole!" during the section - in any other context this would be cheesy, but, wow, it works so well here! Then, the song suddenly turns ominous, and remains so for the its last three minutes, as if it were exit music as the band walks off-stage... It's intentionally leaving you wanting more; it's almost a promise that they'll be back. Just wait and see.

Hopefully, we won't have to wait three more years though...

New Music: Devotion

It seems funny that a band called Beach House would release an album in the winter. That is, until you hear their music. Much like its February release date, Devotion is bleak, cold, and beautiful. Like the coldest of seasons, it’s Beach House’s desolation that makes it so pretty.

Similar to the band’s self-titled debut, Devotion consists of simple songs and instrumentation. The sounds here don’t vary from their established keyboard/organ/guitar/drum machine template. Victoria Legrand’s voice, compared to Nico by All Music Guide, shines through the barren echoes of the accompanying music, telling stories of despair. Beach House is certainly not summer music.

It’s not bad, either. “You Came to Me” builds up to a mysterious climax as Legrand sings “You came to my in my dreams.” The music suggests those weren’t daydreams. “Gila” and “Turtle Island,” like most of the other songs on Devotion, are beautifully sad. The album truly reaches its peak with the “Holy Dances,” “All The Years,” “Heart Of Chambers” trio. The three songs conjoin with each other and share the same nearly sing-song sensibility – one not found on their debut.

The main weakness of this album is that it’s strongest in the middle. It doesn’t start flat or fizzle out, but its moments of brilliance and beauty are found mostly mid-way through. That’s not to say the end is entirely devoid of “moments,” though. “Astronaut” ends with a catchy background vocal riff that appears at just the right time in the tune. “D.A.R.L.I.N.G.” takes elements of surf music and seems to, well, sedate them – staccato organ riffs, buzzing guitars, and surf beats are all devoid of all but despair here. In fact this song, like most of the album, sounds like it came from a haunted house – in a good way, of course.

With Devotion, Beach House has created one of the better albums of 2008 so far. It’s impossibly pretty, yet bleak, mood calls to mind other beautifully sad releases…

Calla – Scavengers
Beck – Sea Change
The Durutti Coumn – Someone Else’s Party
The Clientele – Strange Geometry

Devotion and these other releases are worth checking out on a rainy, or snowy, day.