Heartbreaking Bravery
Jagjaguwar
2012
Rating: 8 fig newtons out of 10
For those unaware, Moonface = Spence Krug from Wolf Parade & Sunset Rubdown. I absolutely loved the debut full-length "Organ Music Not Vibraphone Like I'd Hoped," so I was quite looking forward to how that would be followed up. That debut was pretty much just keyboards, drum machine, and Krug's voice, so color me quite surprised when from the first note this record is chock full of real percussion, guitar, and other organic instrumentation. It turns out Krug went to Finland and recorded the album with the band Siinai, some folks he knew from his Wolf Parade days. This combination really gave the record a fuller, more robust sound than you'd typically expect out of Moonface, based on previous output. Honestly, it feels like an entirely new band if not for Krug's voice. The previous record was five epic tracks of organ noodling and "out there" lyrics; well, the lyrics are still pretty zonked but this album doubles the track length and outside of one song ("Headed for the Door"), drastically cuts down on the song run times. It's almost...a pop record. A pop record wrapped inside of a kraut/synth/drone envelope. The third track "Shitty City" was an instant favorite, but nothing here disappoints.
If you're a fan of Krug's work, it would be hard to imagine not liking this. No matter how different the music gets, it's all held together by that instantly recognizable voice of his. This will be on my best records of the year least, I can say this with no hesitation.
No comments:
Post a Comment