January 2011: The Month Of "D"

This month, January 2011, there are four bands with names that begin with the letter "D" who are releasing albums that are very good to just about perfect. It is an exciting month for music, and here I am, about to talk a little bit about these four albums.


Deerhoof Vs. Evil - Deerhoof (Polyvinyl, 2011)
With the recent signings of Deerhoof and Vivian Girls, the Polyvinyl Record Co. seems to be trying to make some sort of hipster comeback. This is awesome. After the wonderful guitar onslaught that 2008's Offend Maggie brought, I've been anxious for the next Deerhoof LP. After my first couple of times through Deerhoof Vs. Evil, I was a little disappointed. "The Merry Barracks" has some brilliant moments (mainly in its guitar chime towards the end), and the album's opening two tracks, "Qui Dorm, Nomes Somia" and "Behold a Marvel in the Darkness," almost rival the best tracks from Offend Maggie ("Offend Maggie" and "Family of Others"). Almost. The sounds throughout are considerably more varied than Offend Maggie and 2005's The Runners Four, thus having more in common with Milk Man (2004) and Friend Opportunity (2007). Thankfully, this new one is still very much a Deerhoof record, as the beautifully quirky melodies, chimey retro guitars, driving bass and Greg Saunier's insane drumming are all still there. Deerhoof Vs. Evil is already easily growing on me.


Kaputt - Destroyer (Merge, 2011)
I've gone on quite a journey with Dan Bejar's Destroyer since 2008's disappointing (though not terrible by any means) Trouble in Dreams. 2009 saw the release of a couple ambient songs in the Bay of Pigs EP, and last year there was the Archer on the Beach EP, which featured two even more ambient tracks that were way over my head. Also in 2010, I revisited Destroyer's Rubies (2006), and discovered that it is one of my favorite albums of the past decade. So, I was very interested in the 2011 release of Kaputt, which comes out of the gate with a fantastic and surprising sound that is subtle, smooth and sexy. There's not a song that's less than good in the whole lot. The chord progressions are painstakingly simple and brilliant and Bejar's signature crooning is just as awkward and somehow enjoyable as ever. Substituting acoustic drums with drum machine is an intriguing and appropriate decision, and the additions of sexy saxophone and flute are welcome ones, as weird as that may be. "Bay of Pigs" shows up again as Kaputt's closer, and it just might be the record's best track. I am very much looking forward to spending more time with this one.


Emergency & I (Vinyl Reissue) - The Dismemberment Plan (Barsuk, 2011)
The Dismemberment Plan's seminal 1999 masterpiece, Emergency & I, gets the vinyl treatment for the first time, and now that I'm pretty seriously purchasing vinyl, I couldn't be more excited. The album is just about perfect and still sounds fresh and completely unique 12 years into its existence. The vinyl reissue features perhaps their zaniest track, "The Dismemberment Plan Gets Rich", from the split EP with Juno, as well as a few b-sides that I've never heard before. I cannot wait to hear what "A Life of Possibilities," "Spider in the Snow," "The City," "Girl O'Clock" and "Back and Forth" sound like on vinyl.


Ducktails III: Arcade Dynamics - Ducktails (Woodsist, 2011)
I haven't necessarily loved anything Ducktails' Matthew Mondanile has released (aside from absolutely everything I've heard from his main band, Real Estate) until I heard some of the songs from his just released third full length, Ducktails III: Arcade Dynamics. His previous releases are predominantly ambient and formless lo-fi psychedelic soundscapes that often times were quite beautiful. Ducktails III: Arcade Dynamics is much different in the sense that it basically sounds like a druggier Real Estate with drum machine instead of live drums. Obviously it is very early to make this claim, but as of the middle of January, I think this is my favorite album in 2011 so far.