Destroyer – Kaputt (Dead Oceans)
5/5
By: Laurence Nettle
Like watching a butterfly emerge from its chrysalis, spread its wings and fly off into the light, Destroyer’s Kaputt finally reaches our ears thanks to a long overdue UK release from Dead Oceans records. Displaying as much wonder as such a natural occurrence, Dan Bejar has tapped into every ounce of inner beauty he possesses, and the result is an amazing album that feels good, sounds good, and in the case of the 2LP gatefold vinyl edition, looks damn good too.
That’s not to say however that Bejar’s previous work is anything of a grotesque writhing larva, far from it in fact. Destroyer’s back catalogue has provided a fantastic groundwork that leads to this epiphany of music with the previous success of the likes of Your Blues and Destroyer’s Rubies that significantly opened others’ eyes to this ability. “I write poetry for myself” we hear in second track ‘Blue Eyes’, which maintains form that this is a very personal project for Bejar - yet he has found a manner of musical progression that will surely appeal to a much wider following.
To tie it to a genre is difficult. There are many influences to this, as it mixes a blend of gentle saxophone, soft vocals, airy synth and addictive percussion. It has all the makings of a fantastic pop album, yet maintains the avant-garde feel that will still appeal to Bejar’s cult of diehard fans. These influences reach back to a distant sound from three decades ago, where you can almost hear some possible similarities to Roxy Music, Leonard Cohen or even The Cure, but there’s a modern electronica and indie appeal also, to bring it back to our current age. Like a true artiste, Bejar is able to blend each of these styles into his own unique masterpiece, where each track has its own distinguishing mark on the album and is as good as the rest.
‘Chinatown’ opens with comforting acoustic guitar, as the airy saxophone comes in with its bluesy feel, accompanied by Bejars fantastic soft vocals. This is greatly balanced by the noticeably beautiful voice of Sibel Thrasher, which works wonderfully as the two sing together “I can’t walk away,” “you can’t walk away” - a much appreciated accompaniment, which adds contrast to Bejar’s usual vocal expression of his individual and often idiosyncratic thoughts.
The most notable track on the album is perhaps ‘Suicide Demo For Kara Walker’. Purely beautiful flute and atmospheric synths build a fantastic introduction to this eight minute long work of art, that is truly the pinnacle to the success of Kaputt. Through soothing chimes and a soft bass, this mesmerizing feeling continues to Bejar’s vocals. Such an arrangement for this track is just so pleasing, and when we finally hear the return of Sibel Thrasher’s voice, a feeling of pure adoration rushes through the body. Could it actually get much better than this? The answer is yes, as trumpets and saxophone culminate into an upbeat and a jazzy finale to this emotional and uplifting track.
Possibly a more commercial venture for Destroyer due to Kaputt’s sure-to-be wide audience appeal, it still remains true to previous adopted themes. ‘Savage Night At The Opera’ comments on the over-commercialism of the music industry, as Bejar sings “you sound familiar with your scene...I heard your record, it’s alright.” This is certainly not dis-heartening to hear though, as what aides the intrigue of Destroyer’s work is the intelligence and thought to each track. Poetic lyricism should never be dull, and Kaputt has an abundance of interesting and sometimes cryptic verse.
By the time we reach the album finale, with ‘Bay Of Pigs (Detail)’, a feeling of intense satisfaction is very much overwhelming. The 10 minute track begins with yet more washes of synth and atmosphere building anticipation of something big to come, as we hear Bejar at his most vulnerable bearing his soul - “Listen, I’ve been drinking, as our house lies in ruin”. A truly unique man and one of the world’s eccentric but masterful composers, his voice lifts as the tempo increases and we reach an electronic yet acoustic combination and a drum beat that I found impossible to not clap along to. Romanticism is returned as Sibel Thrasher’s beautiful vocal accompaniment sings us out as Destroyer’s epic ride ends, drawing the curtain on a fantastic album that will have a profound effect on anyone willing to give it a spin. It’s a thorough pleasure, and the finest album of 2011 thus far.
Artists in this article: Destroyer
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