borrowed tunes: deerhoof :: the runners four

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October 19, 2005

deerhoof :: the runners four

I put Deerhoof in a category with The Fiery Furnaces, in that their constant invention makes single songs exhausting to listen to, let alone entire albums. And the fact is, if this album were shorter, it would be plainly brilliant. Deerhoof make more explicit reference than ever before to traditional rock on The Runners Four, and unfortunately that includes a nod to more expansive album construction, which isn't necessarily their strong suit.

If you haven't heard Deerhoof before, I'd imagine that reading their press would leave you with the impression that they are one of those annoyingly cute Japanese art-pop bands, or an overly challenging/cerebral experimental outfit, or some combination of the two. And they do sometimes come off as that sort of combination (though only the singer is Japanese), but what it leaves out is what a muscular, humming rock band they are. Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band is another popular comparison, and it's the most apt, in that Van Vliet's crew could rock out as often as they could wilfully deconstruct your expectations of guitar/bass/drum music.

The Runners Four has an incredible sound, with rich, slashing guitar chords and a compressed, warm and slightly fuzzed drum sound that demonstrates how a great, thundering drummer needs only the simplest recording treatment to sound better than the most meticulously miked hack. In some ways, the power-trio sound recalls the Who circa Live at Leeds, with each song's twists and turns a kind of twice-baked version of Tommy's "Underture" This album contains more great Deerhoof songs than any of their previous efforts, especially in the album's first half. But while these songs occasionally verge on known territory, I think claims of "accessibility" may be misleading: this is still pretty damn odd music, and Deerhoof remains an acquired taste.

But, alas, at 57 minutes and 20 tracks, there are just a few too many middling tracks to mark The Runners Four an unqualified success. Strange, that: they've specialized in ~30 minute discs in the past. Nobody will tell on you if you decide to burn your own more compact version of this disc to make one of the ten best records of the year.

If you listen to this and wonder if Deerhoof is that good live, they are. Even better, really.

Spirit Ditties of No Tone (mp3)
Wrong Time Capsule (mp3)

Posted by borrowed_tunes at October 19, 2005 10:26 PM

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