Mix the vocal range of Mariah Carey, with the pop-genius of Timbaland, then throw in Dave Longstreth’s classical training and off-beat, rock-conscious originality, and you have my new summer anthem; the track Stillness Is The Move, my favorite on Longstreth’s most recent release, “Bitte Orca.” I wish I could sing along with Amber Coffman, but seriously I can’t hit those notes.
What I love about Bitte Orca is that it’s so damn listenable, even if I’m mostly speaking in comparison to Dirty Projectors’ previous releases. While releases like “The Glad Fact” (2005 - Western Vinyl) and “Rise Above” (2007 – Dead Oceans) leaned towards the overly experimental and technical, “Bitte Orca” is the perfect blend of the two characteristics that overpower his previous work, with roots in mainstream pop and R&B. About a month ago, I listened to a leak of this album all the way through, and got very excited about it. What first struck me and stayed with me for that month was the guitar work. Longstreth doesn’t just play the guitar well; he creates landscapes with it, as most evident on the tracks No Intention and Temecula Sunrise (my second favorite on the album). I think about what Vampire Weekend did last year with Africa-influenced pop rock. Then, I listen to Remade Horizon, the 8th track on “Bitte Orca,” and I think, “Wow, Dirty Projectors just did with one song what Vampire Weekend took an entire album to try to accomplish (and still didn’t quite get there).” Then there’s Two Doves, a ballad highlighted by classical arrangements and carried by Angel Deradoorian’s haunting vocals. Longstreth, in comparison, has a strange, but refreshing and sometimes even irritating voice that continues to surprise and impress me.
I’m giving this album a high rating because I feel like it’s more deserving than anything else I’ve heard this year…or last year, for that matter. As a whole, the album is only about 40 minutes long. It’s interesting, beat-driven pop, making it extremely easy to listen to. I haven’t taken it off repeat since I bought it, and I don’t think that will change within the next few days. I would have given it a 20 for originality if it weren’t for the nagging feeling in the back of my head that nothing should ever get full points for originality. So, I gave it 19, because honestly, it’s not quite like anything I’ve ever heard before. The only reason it gets 18 points for advancement instead of 20, is that although this album firmly secures Longstreth’s position among the most exciting and innovative musicians of the decade, I think that we still haven’t seen the best of him.
1. Listen start to finish - 20
2. Listen again within a week - 20
3. Originality - 19
4. Advancement - 18
5. Remorse - 20
Total - 97
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