#6

Deerhunter
Microcastle/Weird Era Cont.

Microcastle and it’s Weird Era Cont. companion piece was going to be Deerhunter’s ode to 1950s/60s pop - songs that are almost universally known to our generation as the music blaring from our parents’ mini-vans en route to our summer vacation destinations. Those vacations conjure a perfect mix of painful and pleasant childhood memories and for someone as preoccupied with their past as Cox, it’s an appropriate influence.

As for the music, the 50s/60s stuff isn’t easily identified (however, the beginning of Vox Humana sounds an awful lot like the Ronettes’ Be My Baby) but with golden oldies kept as a central inspiration, Microcastle is easily Deerhunter’s most accessible album and for someone who’s been scared of Deerhunter in the past, this is a wonderful thing. The band has turned down the fuzz a bit which results in songs that aren’t so much Cryptograms but more like lullabies, (the haze left in and warbled vocals ensure it’s a perverse lullaby). The album standouts, Nothing Ever Happened and Saved By Old Times, wouldn’t sound out of place on a comp of the greatest grunge hits. If you really loved Cryptograms then you might very well hate this new album but it’s Deerhunter’s most open and honest record.