They’re a wild cacophony of wild often contrasting blips, beats, and breakdowns. They’re easily one of the most influential rock bands of the last ten years. They’re Deerhoof and they have a message to share with the world.
Although it might take some digging to uncover what that message is.
On 2012’s Breakup Song, the San Francisco natives bundle another hodgepodge of abstract yet completely accessible noises and riffs into an endearing package of pure musical joy. Having influenced bands such as Sleigh Bells, The Flaming Lips, and Sufjan Stevens, Deerhoof’s impact is far reaching and it isn’t difficult to see why.
For example, “To Fly or Not To Fly” starts off like some generic dubstep production from yet another bedroom DJ. About a minute into the track however, it diverges, plunging headlong into some different path previously unknown musical path.
As it turns out, “To Fly or Not To Fly” signals the start of the second half of Breakup Song. It’s as if the record has been flipped over and the grooves on the vinyl materialize only seconds before the needle hits the next note. Such is the nature of Deerhoof’s latest: each song is a journey of discovery.
Side A of Breakup Song is funkier, more experimental whereas side B is somewhat more straightforward indie pop (or as straightforward as Deerhoof get.)
On side B we have “The Trouble With Candyhands,” a cross between a flirty bossa nova number and a toned version of sexy My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult song.
We also have the first single off the album, “Fête D’adieu” (translated as “Farewell Feast” in English.) It’s an absolutely precious masterwork of pop music that declares “I declare the war over,” swung sweetly by the ever charming vocals of Satomi Matsuzaki.
The last time Deerhoof released an album that didn’t receive exemplary marks from critics was over a decade ago and even those releases saw restrained praise from reviewers. Perhaps the message Deerhoof has delivered, whether it was deliberate or not, is that since their inception, they’ve been on the cusp of what’s new, what’s different, and what’s invigorating in music. They’re the German car engineering of rock music, but with the insanity of Italian supercars – reliable, but thankfully, completely unpredictable.
