It’s been close to 20 years since Atlanta, Georgia’s Deerhunter formed and in that time they’ve released 8 official full length albums, Why Hasn’t Everything Already Disappeared? is their latest. Released just two weeks into the new year this 36-minute-long exercise in Nu Post Rock manages to sound fresh and of its time while firmly rooted in two groundbreaking artistic milestones of the past.
Throughout the 10 tracks of Deerhunter’s latest lead singer and primary songwriter Bradford Cox, along with bandmates Lockett Pundt, Moses Archuleta, Josh McKay and Javier Morales successfully manage to combine the contrasting worlds of Bowie’s bleak Berlin period (Low 1977) with the psychedelic exuberance of The Zombies baroque pop masterpiece Odyssey And Oracle (1968) recorded a decade earlier in the Summer Of Love 1967.
Despite the sombre nature of much of the albums subject matter “No one’s sleeping, great unrest, in the country there’s much duress” (No Ones Sleeping), “The wind was stained, orange clouds laid out for a toxic view of endless time” (Element), not to mention the album title itself. Deerhunter’s latest is, for the most part, sonically uplifting and unusually upbeat.
Built on a bed of early 70s Eno infused analogue synth sprinkled with heavy doses of harpsichord, horn hits and sax lines reminiscent of both Glam and Berlin era Roxy Music and Bowie respectively, Why Hasn’t Everything Already Disappeared? consistently delights at every turn, a true hybrid.
Rating 8/10
Star Rating 4/5
2019 Song Of The Day Club 10/52