‘Rubies’ is the seventh studio album from Dan Bejar, AKA Destroyer, the sometime guitarist of Canadian ‘supergroup’ New Pornographers. Not specifically a brand new release, ‘Destroyer’s Rubies’ came out in America some 17 months ago on the fantastic Merge records. Its official UK release on Rough Trade gives a timely opportunity to re-examine this startling piece of work afresh. While not necessarily Bejar’s most ambitious work it is perhaps his most fully realised, combining his trademark poetics with sweeping pop songs that almost defy categorisation.
In fact, all you really need to know about this album is contained within the eponymous nine and a half minute opus that kicks off the album. ‘Rubies’ the song is essentially an epic poem set to a soundtrack that falls somewhere between lo-fi folk rock and laid back lounge pop. The dense conversational lyrics that open with the forceful statement: “Cast myself towards infinity / Trust me, I had my reasons”, twist and turn alongside a meandering guitar line, developing into a chorus of soothing “la la la la”s. Fitting both succinct couplets like “Blessed doctor, do your worst / Cut me open, remove this thirst” and seemingly awkward run on lines like “Don’t worry about her / She’s been known to appreciate the elegance of an empty room” seamlessly into the flow of his tale, Bejar proves that this kind of cerebral approach can function perfectly well as accessible, even ‘pop’, music.
Much of the album follows this formula, and this is no bad thing for it is both an affecting and effective one. It is Destroyer’s lyrics that tend to take many of the plaudits and much of the attention and this album is no different, for Bejar is a true poet and there are gems throughout. Mixing elements of Dylan’s imagery, Cohen’s overt but eloquent masculinity (almost all the songs are directed at, or discuss, women) and Lou Reed’s dark wit, these tales are an indulgent treat for those who like their songs full of allegory, wordplay and more simply, interest.
If there is a criticism of ‘Rubies’, it is that after nearly an hour of it, the album can become musically a little repetitive. Several of the songs end up with similar, generic “la la la” vocals, to the point that some of them are difficult to distinguish from each other. As a result of this, Destroyer’s music can sometimes be viewed, perhaps justifiably, as simply a vehicle for Bejar’s song-poems. However, for the most part Bejar’s individual style provides perfect accompaniment to his lyrics, and it is through the delicate aural touches of these deeply layered and expertly arranged epics that the quality of the wordplay is allowed to shine through. Despite the convoluted lyrics and the distinctive voice, ‘Rubies’ remains an extremely accessible album.
The finer moments on ‘Rubies’ are numerous. ‘European Oils’ is a gentle piano-led number that boasts some great use of the tremolo and builds to a fantastic, if short-lived, fuzzy guitar solo, and some typically obtuse but intriguing lyrics: “When I’m at war I insist on slaughter and getting it on with the hangman’s daughter. / She needs release. / She needs to feel at peace with her father, the fucking maniac…”. This, along with ‘Painter In Your Pocket’, is where Bejar gets closest to Leonard Cohen with his pointedly artistic treatment of words, the latter including the perfect: “I didn’t stand a chance, I couldn’t stand at all”. Though similar, both ‘Looters’ Follies’ and ‘A Dangerous Woman Up To A Point’ are individual joys with more lines of pure poetry such as the alliterative “Girls like gazelles graze, / boys wearing bells blaze new trails in sound” (‘Looters’ Follies’). Later in the piece, ‘Priest’s Knees’ and ‘Watercolours In The Ocean’ are pure pop songs that belie the density of what is held within them.
‘Destroyer’s Rubies’ is the sound of a half-mad drunkard soaked in bourbon, sitting at the piano in the corner of some dingy Vancouver bar, rambling verses tinged with brilliance and invoking the power of some hellish lounge band. Whatever you think of Bejar’s voice or his dense, elaborate lyrics and wordy approach to song writing, it is an album that, despite the length and meandering nature of many of the songs, remains generally captivating throughout. The perfect antidote to modern watered-down singer songwriters, Destroyer’s music is interesting, intellectual, intense and delivered with the shameless integrity of a true master. Quite simply this is the work of an artist.
****
First published on rockfeedback.com. See it here.
No comments:
Post a Comment