Dan Deacon – Snookered

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[rating:74/100]

Dan Deacon’s music certainly isn’t for everyone. With all the bleeps, blips, and electro-overdose, his music can get a little heavy and, on some level, annoying. After hearing most of Deacon’s latest, Bromst, I can say that he certainly has made an effort to make his songs slightly more accessible- but there’s a big emphasis on slightly.

This track, “Snookered,” starts off with some light bells and chimes, but we know exactly where it’s going. Trademark Deacon fuzz and chattering grows and fades in the background, and finally a drum beat kicks in.

Deacon’s voice then chants over the light drums and synths, James Murphy style: “Been round this road so many times, feel like its skin is part of mine…been wrong so many times before, but never quite like this.” The song continues to build as the layers and layers of the computer wizard’s music pile on top of one another. About halfway through, we hit one of a few epic moments, as a powerful chorus of chipmunks hit some very high notes.

That moment breaks down into yet another standout, as Deacon mixes and matches his “ays” and “ohs” against each other in a dance-y, beatbox style. Our initial chords and chorus kick back in, giving way to the closing bells, and we have ourselves another electro-epic off of Bromst.

Deacon’s most recent stuff has taken a bit more of a cathartic, redeeming, powerful vibe…think LCD Soundsystem’s brand of “important techno.” But songs like “Snookered” still contain some annoying parts that, if shedded, could lead to more accessible brilliance.  “Snookered” is a very good song to a casual listener, and a great song to someone with more of an ear for Deacon’s type of music (or just in the right mood). But it doesn’t have the same emotion that “Build Voice,” the best track off of Bromst, has. “Voice” more perfectly balances the fine line between the soul and the techno than “Snookered” does. But this is still an exciting offering from Deacon, who seems like he’s only getting better.

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by Adam Offitzer on March 19, 2009 ‡ 0 reactions