Dirty Projectors - Bitte Orca (9 tracks) +Album Reviews

Unlistenable

Christine | NH | 11/16/2009

(1 out of 5 stars)

"After seeing this album get nearly universal acclaim from the critics, I figured it was worth listening to to see what the fuss was about. So I gave it a full listen, expecting to find it at least somewhat enjoyable. Unfortunately, I found it totally unappealing and actually very annoying. It is definitely true that the songs on the album are inventive and experimental, and if you're mostly just looking for something different, you might like this. But for me, the aesthetic doesn't work at all.

David Longstreth takes a kitchen sink approach to production, throwing in what sounds like every possible thing he can think of. He seems to be trying very hard to make the songs interesting to listen to, incorporating multiple vocalists who sing in different styles all at once, unusual rhythmic variations against a standard melodic line, and all sorts of other things floating around all over the place. While, in theory, that could sound pretty cool, what this results in here is sort of the sonic equivalent of taking tofu fried in soybean oil, covering that with marinara sauce, slicing in some kiwi, drizzling some truffle oil over all that, and then adding a few dashes of fish sauce and a cup of cold chocolate milk.

Even "Stillness is the Move," the song on the album that most resembles a single, suffers from an overall sense of clutter and sloppiness. While the female singers give a strong performance, there is just too much going on, and the mix of all that is too raw and unfocused for the song to ever truly gel.

My musical tastes in general tend to veer towards the alternative and odd, but this album just doesn't work for me at all. Clearly some people do seem to love it, so if you too are intrigued by the amazing reviews this often gets, try to preview some full songs before buying the whole thing."

The most accessible Dirty Projectors album to date.

Samuel Dennis Goodwin Jr. | Birmingham, AL | 06/09/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If you've been turned off by the Dirty Projectors in the past because they were either too intricate, too nonsensical, or too pretentious, then I think you will love this album. Every song is unique and well arranged and, although much more straightforward than past albums, still keeps some of the jazzy mathiness that old fans will love. The vocals have reached a new high with impressive three-part female harmonies complementing Dave Longstreth's angular, rhythmic singing. Highly recommended; I just keep coming back for more, even after weeks of listens, and that doesn't happen often for me."

Hip African riffs minus the untidy emotion

Joel D. Kreager | Seattle, WA USA | 11/24/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Well, these people do know how to create an excellently sticky hook. Bits from the album stick in my mind for days after I have listened to it. The guitarist is quite technically accomplished. He has lifted various riffs with great exactness from various types of African music, but he plays them rather like one of the dudes you find down at Guitar Center - all the speed and flash with none of the feeling. They revel in the "Alterna-crap" silliness, by this I mean they risk no emotion themselves, but merely make an endless ironic commentary on those brave enough to admit to suffering from this unfortunate disease. Protestations of love would not be believed by anyone with a heart, for example "Flourescent Halfdome." This may be their appeal. The male vocalist utterly murders something halfway to a ballad on that song, which may be his intent, it would suit the alterna aversion to risking any sort of emotion or attachment."

Makes good strides toward the future of music

C. Bradley | Elkhart, IN | 10/20/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Bitte Orca is very likely to appear in the top albums of 2009. I agree.

The album presents many musical concepts that are innovative, creative, and catchy. For instance, guitar riffs are very rarely trite or predictable. Melodies are very rarely structured so that the listener is able to hum them after only a listen or two. Meter is unpredictable and yet extremely interesting with all of its syncopation and surprises. Familiar harmonic structure is sparse and creates a very disconnected feel in almost every track. These components together challenge many ingrained concepts of music, and it makes it extremely interesting to truly listen to. Because of these challenges that it presents I do believe it is making strides to creating new styles, encouraging creativity, etc., and deserves to be recognized as one of the best albums of 2009.

However, because the album presents so many complex ideas and so many changes in meter and structure so rapidly it is not likely to become one of the most coherent albums of all time. Like Radiohead, Dirty Projectors present so many new concepts and challenges to what is expected that often the coherency of the ideas, melodies, and lyrics are difficult to perceive (not impossible, just difficult). I believe that like Radiohead, many bands will benefit from taking examples from Dirty Projectors and will most likely become more successful than their predecessors when the original ideas are watered down for mainstream music."

A v. good album, but.

R. Martin | Sunnyvale, CA | 12/16/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I'll say one thing: Dirty Projectors have hit their stride. They were - or, more accurately, he was - unbearably, eye-rollingly pretentious not four years ago, but look at this band now: the best live rock act going, creators of one of the finest albums of 2007, home to the most unlikely guitar hero. It's an exciting thing to see it all come together. Many props to them.

But listen. Now, I'm a huge fan of "Rise Above" - taken on its own terms, it is a near-perfect work. The songs vary wildly, but Longstreth's all-in composition and the unity of the conceit make that album whole, tied together, "of a piece." Unity, wholeness: this is where "Bitte Orca" fails. Spectacularly. It's a textbook example of a top-heavy album.

See, the first three or four songs are unimpeachably awesome - skewed pop at its finest. I love 'em. "Temecula Sunrise" in particular was the jam of the summer. But then "Two Doves" drops - "Two Doves," with its insipid lyrics and unclever Nico biting. And you say to yourself, Okay, okay, it's the first misstep of the album. That's alright: most albums have lesser songs, skippables. Probably Longstreth is just trying to play fair by giving Angel Deradoorian her moment. That's a nice gesture, I can respect it. If anything, this album seems to be Dirty Projectors' "band album," an inclusive joint, their first official step away from the Longstreth & Friends model. And redemption might be a track ahead, yes?

As it turns out, the answer is no. No, it's not. The bottom half of this album is, to put it bluntly, a slog. It's hard to pinpoint what has changed, exactly. The surprises have fallen off - Longstreth's bag of tricks appears to've been emptied. Everything is suddenly midtempo - it may've been before, but now it's unabashedly so. The digressions, such as the "Bitte Orca, Orca Bitte!" bit in "Useful Chamber," seem less inspired and more, well, digressive. The major key warmth of the album begins to wear, the lyrics become unsalvageable by mere melisma. And what is this closing track? A Sinead O'Connor tribute or something?

So, three stars. Last album was better, next album'll be too."

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