September 21st, 2012
Let’s Talk About How To Dress Well
It’s wild to believe that the man responsible for this record is a Brooklyn-based skinny white man with a beard who studies philosophy. It goes to show you that a packaging doesn’t determine what kind of music a person can create. This man’s concoctions are so soulful, and we’re talking about the kind of soul that pulsed through the veins of Marvin Gaye and Prince. His stunning debut in 2010, Love Remains, was a beautiful, dark and mysterious record. And it yielded one of my favorite tracks of the year: “You Won’t Need Me Where I’m Goin’.” THAT was a track that could be enjoyed on repeat, but the record as a whole is almost too dark to listen to it regularly.
And then this week, his new one, Total Loss, got dropped. And it’s amazing, too. How can one man make music this rich, powerful, soulful and complex? The kids these days and their technology! This record’s quite similar and deep (he is a philosophy student, after all). But you should try to read this Pitchfork review which gives it a Best New Music honor with a score of 8.4. It’s obnoxious as hell. Here’s a little taste:
“The sleek, alabaster sound of Total Loss is a far cry from the heavily distorted and distant Love Remains. That album wasn’t considered a drug record for the same reasons Ambien isn’t considered recreational, but its shrouded production mimicked the effect the drug can have when it starts to kick in: the sensation of controlling yourself in an out-of-body experience. That feeling is foreign to Total Loss. It’s still flooded with reverb, but the anesthetic is gone.”
All you need to know is that this record has another track like “You Won’t Need Me” and it’s the stunning “Running Back.” MY GOD. This is modern baby-making music that bursts with beauty. And he’s coming to Philadelphia! On Wednesday, October 10th he’ll be at Johnny Brenda’s and once word catches on, you’ll want to snatch some tickets before it’s too late.
Here’s the first single from Total Loss:
