Destroyer - This Night
(Merge)
Destroyer is a bit of an anomaly. While songwriter Dan Bejar's band could certainly be labeled as pop, their music is more of a challenge than your typical pop. In some ways they inhabit the fringes of the indie world along with more obviously difficult art rock bands. Bejar's unique vocal delivery, distinguished by its Bowie-esque flamboyance and obscure lyrics tends to polarize listeners. While This Night wanders into some new territory, it is bound to have a similar effect.
This Night finds Dan Bejar with a new, more rocking, band that brings Destroyer a little closer to the center of the indie spectrum. The introduction of Nicholas Braggs, whose haunting backing vocals and lead guitar interludes accent Bejar's cutting vocal delivery, is the most striking example. On the tracks "This Night" and "Here Comes The Night," Bejar leaves the backing-vocal-led chorus, which sounds decidedly un-Destroyer like, for the rest of the band. This, however, occasionally hinders the strength of the new record, as Destroyer has always worked with Dan Bejar as its main attraction.
You have to give Dan Bejar credit for trying something new on this, Destroyer's first major indie label release. Bejar is clearly trying to pump some life into rock's decrepit corpse, while adding some new elements to Destroyer's sound. As Bejar sings on "Makin' Angels," "Hey, rock n roll's not through (yet)...I'm sewing wings on this thing." This Night tries hard to be a triumphant announcement to the music world. While it is by no means a disappointment, it sounds compromised in places, and seems to fall short of previous Destroyer releases. Like past releases, This Night is a concept album, predictably tied together by the running theme of the night. Almost every song either mentions or alludes to this everyday phenomenon.
When Bejar rips into tracks such as "Students Carve Hearts Out of Coal," one falls under the spell of his natural songwriting gift, impeccable timing and almost effortless ability to engage. He is blessed with a voice and vision that should cut to the heart of any jaded music fan. This Night will probably gain Destroyer some new fans, as much because of wider distribution as for its leanings to more comfortable indie ground. But if you're comfortable inside, there is no reason to venture into the great outdoors.
|
