What a record. I mean, c’mon, who saw this coming? Deerhunter has always been about its outrageous frontman Bradford Cox, quite deservedly so. At least, I presumed such. Cox is an exceptional talent with a larger than life, eccentric personality and striking appearance, so it figures that he gets all the attention. However, my opinion has slowly changed. Deerhunter, it turns out, contains much more talent than simply Cox. First, I discovered that for the recording of one of the best Deerhunter tracks, the hypnotizing Desire Lines, Cox was not present, with guitarist and singer (of Desire Lines) Locket Pundt receiving much of the credit for the astounding outro and song composition. Hell, I even read an interview where drummer and keyboardist Moses Archuleta, the creator of this record, claimed that he "Wally pipped" Deerhunter’s original drummer out of the gig! Said Archuleta, “One day after we’d been a band for about six months, the drummer didn’t show up to rehearsal. So, I just started playing the drums. I’d never actually sat at a kit, so I had no kit coordination. When I started playing caveman drums, it just worked.” Forgive me if I assumed that, ya know, Archuleta wasn’t exactly a huge influence on Deerhunter’s sound and output.
About this music – it is serene, wonderful, an excellently spaced microhouse record, for the most part, particularly the divine Nightmoves and the two lengthy cuts that make up the center of the album. Digging deeper into interviews with Archuleta, he once said (referencing Deerhunter's record Cryptograms) “I feel like I was the one really pushing for soundscapes and ambient effects.” Upon hearing this album, that sentence, especially in the context of Deerhunter’s catalogue, gave me such an appreciation for Archuleta as a musician. This record is all about beautiful soundscapes, case in point Bodymaker, a Slowdive-esque slice of dream-pop bliss. However, the track Moon Diagrams is an incredible pop song. The song is deliberate, pensive, and atmospheric. Archuleta’s voice sounds so naturally at place amidst such syrupy sonic textures. He reminds me of John Maus, George Clanton, and Michael Gira’s softer cuts in sound and delivery style, yet in a decidedly organic and soothing natural tone. Now, I know that Maus and Gira sound nothing alike, but that sort of combination is certainly quite alluring, no? The track is capped off by a swirling, melodic outro that left me rewinding to catch its brilliance once more. Even on a cut such as Blue Ring, the music goes far and beyond the typical microhouse stylings and textures. An easy rhythm forms the first half of the song, with luscious ambient synth pads guiding the listener down a subterranean velvet river, until it wonderfully morphs into an upbeat psychedelic disco song. Finally, who doesn’t love when the best track on a record is the closer? I certainly do. End of Heartache is a funky, marvelous dance cut that slips into a mellow instrumental passage before swinging back around for one more dopamine-releasing, life-affirming, euphoric chorus. I just want you to keep me around and never let me go Interviews with Moses Archuleta which quotes were pulled from- https://www.moderndrummer.com/article/august-2019-deerhunters-moses-archuleta/ https://mezzaninemusic.blogspot.com/2009/02/interview-with-deerhunter-drummer-moses.html
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