Album review: Dan Deacon “America”

You know that feeling you get when you’re driving around and a song comes on that perfectly reflects your surroundings? I haven’t been there in a while, but Dan Deacon’s latest album, America, channeled the streets of the big old apple by the sea, NYC, in all its loud, blinking, over-lit glory. It is not that surprising, since Deacon himself is a Long Island native, and the quick, quirky sounds could be applied (I’m sure) to a lot of big American cities. New York just took the cake in this instance.

As a follow-up to his 2009 album, Bromst, Deacon delivers an electric-infused musical escapade that bounces from north to south, to east and west, and back again, almost like the massive expanse of America herself. The assortment of tracks barely leaves any keyboard or synthesizer sound unturned as they shift from upbeat and energized songs like ‘Guilford Avenue Bridge’ and ‘True Thrush’, to the more somber ‘Prettyboy’, and classically based ‘USA III Rail’. With scattered, hazy, background vocals, all tracks offer a wash of various chords, I’m talking a lot, that intertwine to create layered ear magic that is surprisingly different. In a world saturated by heavy vocals, capturing listeners with instrumentals is no an easy task but Dan Deacon found a way to do it, and he keeps it fresh.

If anything, this album is unlike most others in your collection, and a creative effort from a seriously dedicated individual. Beneath the over-sized glasses and ginger beard is a mind obviously whirring with beats and audio patterns inspired by his encompassing homeland. And whether it’s NYC or Nowhereville, Arkansas, America will stir some sort of urban spirit deep within you. Check it out.