Review | Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest

Deerhunter - Halcyon Digest

If you've been following my blog, you will know that I've recently been obsessed with Deerhunter. I like to refer to them as 'My Bloody Valentine 2.0'. A shoegaze band for us young ones. I compare the two because of their similar songwriting processes. Lyrics aren't very important to either band and it's all "stream of consciousness" writing.

I've been waiting for the new Deerhunter for months now and finally, I've got it. Let me start of by saying, Deerhunter has always confused me a little, but only because of the huge variety of musical directions and variations their albums offer, but their new album, Halcyon Digest, screams of a band that has found its feet. It's slipped into a pair of Air Force One's and has taken to kicking ass and leaving names, because names are irrelevant.

The album starts out with a the minimalistic "Earthquake" and it took me a little by surprise, because Deerhunter are fantastic at creating wonderfully layered musical, but by the item "Don't Cry" starts I'm smiling. It's a wonderful poppy ditty that is about is traditionally "indie" as I've heard that band.

"Revival" is a more typically Deerhunter track, with long build ups, tons of layers, but it's more melodic than expected, yet again, another good surprise. "Sailing" is my least favourite track on the album, it's very bare, but very haunting, but one trend I am noticing is Cox's more adventurous and fleshed out lyrics.

When "Desire Lines" starts, the album changes, it takes off and it's because that is where guitarist Lockett Pundt's songwriting comes to the fore. It's a hypnotising, textured post punk masterpiece and after my first listen, this was the track I listened to on repeat.

"Basement Scene" and "Fountain Stairs" could be songs off Deerhunter's magical "Microcastle", but luckily for us, they're not. They're slow, hypnotic and brilliantly constructed and also serve as the perfect prelude and sequel to the one track I heard off the album before it was released, "Helicopter". This song defies explanation, Cox's clear vocals are clean, undistorted and the melody makes me want to go and lie down on the grass, turn it up and forget about the world.

"Coronado" surprised me the most on the album though. With Julian Casablanca'esque vocals, this jangly number begs the question, "why don't all songs have a saxophone in them?"

The final track on the album completes what I think to be Deerhunter's coming of age album. "He would've laughed" is a poignant track dedicated to Cox's dear friend (and personal punk rock hero), Jay Reatard who died earlier this year. The song is so well crafted that after four minutes, it descends into a self destructive, stripped down and vulnerable Cox paying tribute to his friend. This song is 7:29 long, but it could've 70:29 for all I care. It's phenomenal and the perfect way to end what I consider to be front runner for album of 2010.

Over
Rick

My shoes require your gaze

Deerhunter. No, not the fantastic film, but the band, I discovered them about two years ago, but until recently I hadn't really given them the attention they deserve. Now I am hooked. Bradford Cox, the mastermind behind the band creates more than songs, he creates soundscapes, soundspheres, little planets bursting with sounds for your ears to explore.

Bradford Cox

The band is from Georgia and completely defies characterisation. But not in an "I would like to rip my eardrums out with pliers" kind of way, more of a "is that indie? is that shoegaze? is that noise?" kind of way. Deerhunter were quite obviously influenced by band like My Bloody Valentine, The Birthday Party (on the older records), Stereolab, Echo & the Bunnymen and Bowie, but the way they blend these together leave me astonished.

Their first album, with one of the most abrasive titles ever, "Turn it up faggot" sounds like a band trying to find its feet and struggling with its own demons. This anger and angst is what reminds me of Nick Cave's first band, The Birthday Party, and that aggression spills over halfway onto their second album, the phenomenal, Cryptograms.

The album comes at you like driving hail, attacking from all angles, but fear not, once "Providence" starts, it's all mellow, easy and hypnotic.  But in my opinion, while all of their stuff up to Cryptograms is fantastic, Microcastle is where Deerhunter really found their feet and Cox found his songwriting niche. 

A collection of mid tempo ballads, broken up with ambient magic, Microcastle is an indie work of art. The album leaked two months before its release date and that resulted in an entirely different story, for the geeks, here is the low down. Basically, the band then wanted to reward fans who waited for the album to be released by recording another album, Weird Era Cont. And I would just like to thank them for that. It's brilliant. In effect these two serve as one of the best double albums possibly ever.

So, if you want some rock/ambient/interestingly hypnotic music to spice up your life, Deerhunter is your band. Honestly, get Microcastle and Weird Era Cont. If you dig em and want more, find the rest, but those two should be your starting point. If you enjoy the weirder stuff, check out Cox's solo project, Atlas Sound. Equally as magical and fantastical, if more introspective than Deerhunter. 

Their new album is due for release on September 28 and I hope some of you will be listening to it with me. Halcyon Digest is bound to be brilliant, if the tracks I've heard are anything to judge by. 

"So long to the days you grow sad of, and if I try but found not much for you to hold, the more you hold, the more you feel alone and wait, till you can wait. So long to the days you come to know, so you had to get there on your own to wait to grow old, you're waiting to grow old." - Neither of Us, Uncertainly - Deerhunter.

And life my friends, is way too short to not have Deerhunter in it. Even if you don't like meat.

Over 

Rick