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How often is it that a band manages to create innovative, recklessly experimental music whilst at the same time remaining fun, uplifting and in no way alienating? Well, if the band in question is Deerhoof and, as the title of this review suggests, it is, the answer is exactly once every 1.27 years over a 14 year period (trust me I used a calculator).
‘Deerhoof vs. Evil’ is the 11th studio album that the San Francisco based band has produced since their debut back in 1997. A listener coming to this album with contemporary reference points and no prior experience of Deerhoof might be lured into labelling it “Math Rock”. Given that the album’s first two minutes feature more time signature changes than most groups manage in an album, perhaps an initial impression that the group have more ideas than sense is forgiveable, if soon disproved.
For every moment aimed at setting off a stirring in the corduroys of amateur musicologists there’s an equally brilliant moment of mind numbing catchiness. Being able to produce both is something few groups can do. It’s like watching someone walking on stilts on a tightrope. As you might expect of such an act there are occasional missteps.
On ‘Super Duper Rescue Heads!’, for example, the band creates a euphoric floor filling hook that The Naked and the Famous could, and probably will, spend their careers trying to emulate. However, rather than use it as a focal point for the song they abandon it, venturing off on an ill-fated jazzy tangent. It is of course, a trade off worth making.
The most important thing is to remember is the spirit the songs are done in. Nothing here reeks of the poe-faced pretence of Battles and their ilk, neither is it reminiscent of the honeyed schizophrenia of Of Montreal. Instead they retain a slanted humour that belies their origins as contemporaries of Pavement and Yo La Tengo. Nowhere is this more evident than in the joyous blasts of feedback that propel ‘Behold a Marvel in the Darkness’ along.
Other highlights include the glitchy rhythms of ‘The Merry Barracks’ and penultimate track ‘I Did Crimes for You’, complete with a stadium rock chorus Kings of Leon would give their ghost writers left arms for. If 2011 offers up much that tops this it’ll be a fine vintage indeed.
