Here they are: the last great Rockstars of their era. Deerhunter, the colorful unit assembled around shapeshifting maestro Bradford Cox, have managed to be the most lasting and impactful band of a loosely-associated scene that dominated the landscape of American rock music of the millennial age. As this month sees the 15th anniversary of the release of their debut album, it seems only just to take a look at their achievements โ so far โ release by release.
In slow motion: following the dissolution, dissatisfaction or homogenization of the garage rock-heavy ‘The-Bands’ that spawned around the success of The Strokesโs debut Is This It?, most American music journalists turned towards the promising venture of ‘Blog Acts’ โ small bands that had accumulated enough local success to fund EPs or humbly-produced albums. The trend turned out to be a fad that lasted barely one summer, and acts that had been crowned by audiences and critics alike were dismissed just a few months later.
In the meantime, a large number of individual acts that spawned parallel to The Strokes had slowly built complex back-catalogues of sprawling discographies. These bands had clear pop structures at the heart of their material, but combined it with unfiltered bedroom-style DIY production and psychedelic soundscapes, making for occasional detours into noise and ambient. Among them were: Liars, Animal Collective, The Black Lips, Jay Reatard. The fact that these acts, often associates and collaborators, didnโt have an easily identifiable unifying aesthetic is part of why theyโve never been identified under one genre term, even though they often shared line-ups and directly influenced each other.
It was on that fertile soil made up of avant-garde pop, post-punk and psychedelic noise that Deerhunter manifested.
Turn it Up, F***** (2005)
Deerhunterโs harsh, chromatic debut album can be seen as an attempt of ultimate provocation. Thereโs the title, recycled from a hecklerโs sarcastic comment on the bandโs live sound. Jared Swileyโs half-erect cock, an outcome of Cox improvising erotica during the photo session, rounding off a mixture of homo-erotic kitsch and American iconography. And finally, the unkempt punk sound that sugarcoats the nine otherwise sparkling dance-punk numbers.
While Cox dismisses the album as a โstudent filmโ-like project that documented the bandโs limitations moreso than their qualities, itโs rich with the individual aspects that the band would expand upon later on. The talent is evident in the Piper at the Gates of Dawn-like opening to “N. Animals”; “Adorno”โs memorable bass-line; the dueling guitars and adolescent anxiety of “Basement”; and the attempt to merge punk and shoegaze on the albumโs lone single “Oceans”. The songs mostly spiral around one key rhythm and climax in harsh noise, making the album feel like the unlikely marriage of Butthole Surfers and Bloc Party. Made up of Cox, drummer Moses Archuleta, bassist Josh Fauver (who stepped in for the bandโs deceased original member Justin Bosworth โ a recently recuperated heroin addict who broke his neck while skateboarding) and guitarist Colin Mee, the line-up might lacks the touch of future guitarust Lockett Pundt, but still feels valid and lively. Widely underrated, it hasnโt been reissued since its release in 2005 โ a crime!
Carve Your Initials Into The Wall Of The Night & Unrequited Narcissist (2005)
These obscure, experimental projects were sold during early touring; CD-Rs with zine-artwork in low numbers. Probably only featuring Cox and Archuleta, both have the feeling of a costume fitting for the sonic structures that would later be explored on Cryptograms.
Carve Your Initials has a slightly more industrial feel to it, probably due to its extended noise orgies and repetitive spoken word-pop, not unlike Ramleh, Flaming Tunes and other British cassette-only releases from the 80s.
Unrequited Narcissist might seem similar at first, but is more interested in nuance. Thereโs genuine songs here, such as the โHe Would Have Laughedโ-esque opener โSummer 1991โ, tropical percussion on โSpring 1997โ, and an odd concept clearly spelled out within the song titles. Thereโs a hint of the same underwater dance-beats that are found on Slowdiveโs 5 EP and shades of Throbbing Gristle, minus the extreme imagery. While maybe not essential, thereโs a fragile beauty here fans donโt want to miss out on.
Cryptograms & Fluorescent Grey (2007)
Cryptograms saw a troublesome genesis. A first attempt โ recorded by folk musician Samara Lubelski โ failed spectacularly. Cox suffered from flu and pneumonia and was battling his disappointment with Deerhunter’s debut. According to him (in comments later redacted) the piano used was out of tune and the 2″ tape machine broke down โ horn sections were recorded and in the end inaudible. Cox has described the end product as sounding like โLoveless on mushrooms, [โฆ] in not a complimentary wayโ to Pitchfork, and later used some of it for an experimental online-mixtape.
After ruminating on quitting the band, Cox was comforted by his new friends, the band Liars, who, in their own words, rebuilt his confidence in his abilities. The resulting album was the outcome of three individual sessions in 2005 and 2006, each coming months after the last. The first seven songs were recorded over the coarse of one day, with the ending of โRed Inkโ marking the tape spinning off the reel. โWhite Inkโ, โProvidenceโ and โRed Inkโ clearly reconnect with Cox’s original approach of creating an ethereal, from his perspective โfeminineโ record. Meanwhile, โCryptogramsโ, โLake Somersetโ and โOctetโ feel like a wild mix of psychedelic Krautrock and the sterile post-punk aesthetic of Factory Records (the latter being the result of New York studio Rare Book Room owner Nicholas Vernhes remixing the album after the band wasnโt too satisfied initially).
Resuming recording that winter, Cox once again found himself battling the flu, but managed to record four crystalline pop songs, which were later complimented by the short ambient interlude โTape Hiss Orchidโ. โSpring Hall Convertโ and โHazel Stโ are more in line with the thoroughly pretty shoegaze of Slowdive than with the influences of the previous session, while โStrange Lightsโ is a full blown epic of guitar noise, and closing track “Heatherwood” resumes the percussion found on the tour-only releases.
While Cryptograms was in the final mixing stages, the band returned to the studio once more and recorded Fluorescent Grey, an EP which would eventually be assimilated into Cryptograms‘ vinyl release. A continuation of the latter sessionโs sound, the four tracks are bright, multicolored pop songs, with singalong lyrics and euphoric, noisy climaxes.
But, thematically, they couldnโt have been different: where Cryptograms‘ original material was concerned with adolescent iconography and sexual energy, Fluorescent Grey is existentialist, macabre and less cryptic. The title track weaves the morbid image of dead flesh with sexual awakening, while โDr. Glassโ sees Cox expand on images of the Iraq War, probably taking the name from a minor character in Alan Mooreโs Watchmen. Even if โLike Newโ and โWash Offโ, respectively written about the end of a depressive episode and a hippie selling bad drugs, are a little brighter, Fluorescent Grey bookended Deerhunterโs early, chaotic period.
Microcastle & Weird Era Cont. (2008)
Reduced to a four-piece after the drop-out of Mee, Deerhunter rushed back into the studio to record the album that would break them to a larger audience. Microcastle continued their path of the crystalline psychedelia of that started on Fluorescent Grey, but mixes things up significantly.
In โNeither of Us, Uncertainlyโ and โ most prominently โ โAgoraphobiaโ, it includes two tracks composed and sung by Lockett Pundt, with the latter now considered one of the classics of its era. Aiming to remove himself from Cryptogramsโ post-punk sound, Coxโs compositions recall American acts of the mid-60s, like The Byrds and Joe Meek. Mostly shedding the feedback-laden sound allowed for more acoustic experimentation, such as on โMicrocastleโ and โSaved By Old Timesโ and the recordโs centerpiece, a three-song ambient medley.
However, the albumโs standout track remains the outstanding โNothing Ever Happenedโ, co-written by Cox and Fauver, an unrelenting, insanely memorable mix of Kraut- and punk-rock, which the band expanded during live shows into a 30-minute jam-track, incorporating Patti Smithโs guttural “Horses” repetition into the songโs climactic finale. Fauver is the secret star of Microcastle, as his basslines here are probably the most outstanding of its era, only rivalled by Carlos D.โs early work in Interpol.
Microcastle leaked in mid-summer, months before its release, spoiling Coxโs intention of it being an autumnal experience. A little later, when an over-eager fan realized the link to some DIY-solo tracks that Cox uploaded to the band’s blog led to his personal Mediafire account, a โsecretโ Deerhunter album was discoveredโฆ or stolen, if you want to go with Coxโs more accurate assertion. Intended as a โfree surpriseโ album included with Microcastle, Weird Era Cont. is a loose collection of hypnagogic pop and haunted ambient, a sinister collage that made a turn towards early Velvet Underground and aforementioned Joe Meekโs โI Hear A New Worldโ.
Often ignored due to its โ umh โ weirdness, the album includes a variety of all-timers, such as the macabre spoken-word piece โVox Humanaโ, “Vox Celeste”, and the 10-minute fiery shoegaze reimagining of “Calvary Scars” โ a track Cox had refashioned various times on his blog. The uniquely careless attitude of Weird Era Cont. is clear in the art punk of โVHS Dreamโ and โOperationโ, as well as the numerous instrumentals; it’s almost as if weโre witnessing the first attempts at a mixtape of the subjects on the albumโs artwork.
Speaking of which, the reliably relentless Cox switched up artwork for the double album various times, confusing some new to the band to this day. By the release of the album, Cox was emotionally exhausted, and had hired guitarist and school friend Whitney Petty (whom Cox described as โcheerleader with an attitudeโ) to join the band โ only for her free spirit to lead her to leaving shortly after.
To his surprise (and probably fuelled by the drama of the past), Microcastle blew up, received widespread praise, and catapulted the band into the limelight, making it the OK Computer of millennial American underground. European concerts in front of 15 people turned into sold out double-bills with The Black Lips and the band was soon picked up by renowned British indie label 4AD who re-released Microcastle/Weird Era Cont. and put them on their roster alongside the likes of The National, Beirut and TV On The Radio.
Rainwater Cassette Exchange (2009)
Fuelled by a new โanything is possibleโ spirit, the bandโs second EP could potentially be their defining statement of the early era. Only five songs long, it perfects the mixture of Coxโs interests in Meekโs tropical rock with Fauverโs New Order basslines, Archuletaโs Kraut rhythms and Pundtโs ethereal guitar style, allowing all four to stand out in their own right. While the climax of the record is probably โCirculationโ, with a coda that mixes the duelling guitars of Television with a TV-audio collage, the faux-Caribbean sound of the title track and โGame of Diamondsโ and the Strokes-adjacent โDisappearing Inkโ and โFamous Last Wordsโ provide a new levity and show the band at their most accessible and harmonious. As the band would soon part ways with longtime producer Vernhes, it would be for the last time in a while Deerhunter sounded happy.
Halcyon Digest (2010)
The new decade started out sinister, as Coxโs close friend Jay Reatard died of a mix of the flu and cocaine intoxication. Music streaming services hit big, forcing labels to rethink strategies of marketing and release. Struck by the impact of Animal Collectiveโs masterpiece Merriweather Post Pavilion, the band opted for producer Ben H. Allen, whose collaborative approach didnโt sit well with Cox, who saw himself pushed into the (uncomfortable) position of egocentric frontman defending the bandโs interests. This resulted in odd moments, such as when Cox tried to kick out Allen for the recording of โBasement Sceneโ in order to have it be mixed by the 14 year old son of one of the engineers; or when Allen kicked out Cox for the recording of Pundtโs “Desire Lines” (the result, which happens to be Coxโs favorite Deerhunter song, only features his guitar on the first verse).
Surprisingly, this tense atmosphere resulted in what most consider the bandโs masterpiece. Coxโs ambition to achieve a unique drum sound as memorable as that on David Bowieโs Low resulted in the hallucinatory opener โEarthquakeโ and what is probably the bandโs most well-known song, the Dennis Cooper-inspired โHelicopterโ. Channeling the life story of fictional gay pornstar-cum-junky Dima, the trackโs odd mix of dub rhythm and sterile guitars still sounds oddly futuristic and โ at times โ genuinely frightening, like an unholy marriage of Throbbing Gristle and Pulp. Most of the album resulted from the influences of pre-Beatles pop music, such as Roy Orbison and Buddy Holly, with Cox’s slightly-distorted voice reminiscing on death and social isolation, oftentimes providing a voice of comfort, such as in โDonโt Cryโ and โSailingโ. This interest in outsider figures is mirrored in the artwork, which Cox claims came to him when he dropped a book and it opened to display the iconic black and white photo.
The albumโs haunted atmosphere is put into sharp focus with its closer, โHe Would Have Laughedโ. Played by Cox, the icy, Animal Collective-inspired track is titled after a jibe of a Radiohead-forum user that made light of Jay Reatardโs death, shrugging off criticism with โCome on, he would have laughed.โ The song casts Reatard as gold digger in the first part, only for the rhythm and ambience to deteriorate into an odd ballad, which has the narrator wonder where his friends went, recounting he once lived on a farm and wondering about the nature of sleeping. Even though Cox plays ignorant on lyrical influences (citing he makes them up on the spot), thereโs eerie parallels here to Scott Walkerโs โFarmer in the Cityโ, which recounts Pier Paolo Pasoliniโs murder. After seven and a half minutes, the track ends abruptly, signifying the sudden death of his friend. A gut punch.
Surprisingly, the first reactions to the album were mixed, with some fans feeling alienated by the odd mixture of futurism, uneasy nostalgia and early 60s rockโnโroll. By the time of writing, itโs widely โ and rightfully โ considered a standout independent rock album of the last decade.
Monomania (2013)
Bradford Coxโs favorite of his records, Monomania was the result of what he later billed as his low point (or as his sister bills it, his โmental hospital recordโ). Following the death of his friend and Broadcast vocalist Trish Keenan and his cathartic, alcohol-fueled solo-album Parallax, Cox was ready to enter the studio to record an album of โsix really long songs and an American flag floating in the background in slow motionโ when, all of a sudden, Josh Fauver quit via email and with little to no explanation. When it became clear the bassist couldnโt be swayed back into the band, Deerhunter added Josh McKay (whoโs been with them since) on bass, as well as new guitarist Frankie Broyles.
In light of the change-up, the band also decided to abandon their previous concept, leaving us with the song “60 Cycle Hum”, a song played live on the Halcyon Digest tour, as the sole indicator of what could have been. Instead, Cox’s bandmates found interest in a set of dark, depressing tracks he had written following Parallax, dismissingly named by Cox as his โshit eraโ.
The ensuing sessions resulted in a number of acidic, rough and enticingly weird punk rock songs, brimming with Americana, sex and a sense of anger the group hadnโt showcased since the debut. Most of Monomaniaโs aesthetic derives itself from Coxโs ongoing fascination with early rockโnโroll, which is quite palpable in โDream Captainโ, โPensacolaโ, โNeon Junkyardโ and โNitebikeโ. But the main inspirations go further back, with Cox naming Hank Williams, Bo Diddley, John Lee Hooker as touchstones. This shift to blues and country aligned itself with Cox now full-on dismissal of indie rock culture, indulging in a full-on dismantling of his public figure in a number of quite baffling interviews and a now legendary appearance on Jimmy Fallon, where a bronchitis-suffering, Ramones-esque version of Cox spat blood and shuffled through empty studio corridors while his bandmates turned the title track into a chugging guitar maelstrom. To most, itโs that performance which classified โMonomaniaโ as the big standout of the album, with Cox repeating the title ad nauseum as guitar feedback and the sound of a roaring motorbike engine deafen the listener.
But songs like Pundtโs โThe Missingโ and Cox’s eerie, delirious rumination of his brotherโs passing in โT.H.M.โ are some of the bandโs best material. Itโs funny that the record, hyped up in advance of its release by Black Lipsโ Cole Alexander as one of the defining punk albums of its era, was dismissed as โrespectable disappointmentโ upon release, as itโs one of the most unique and uncanny rock albums of the new century. With each additional listen, it reveals itself as an oddly magnetic opal of majestic neon colors buried in stark black marble.
Fading Frontier (2015)
For the first time in a while, Deerhunter seemed stable. Cox had settled into his house and adopted a dog, Faulkner. Pundt had become a father and Archuleta got married. Like many guitarists, Broyles left following an extended tour, but according to all reports, the band finally had reached a healthy balance. But โ as so often in Deerhunterverse โ misfortune struck the band suddenly in December 2014, when Cox, walking Faulkner, was hit by a car. The injuries were grave, and when Cox finally emerged from hospital, he was overcome by debilitating depression. Now on anti-depressants, Cox became a recluse and saw his medication cancel out the manic, libidinal energy he used to fuel Monomania and the previous work.
The longing for safety and harmony Cox described in interviews of the time is instrumental to the resulting aesthetic. Tonally inspired by the sophisticated 80s pop of INXS and Tears for Fears, the pastoral Fading Frontier is probably the closest the band will ever come to a genuine pop album. The introspective and often fairly transparent lyrics remove the morbid yearning of the bandโs previous albums and allow, for the first time, a sense of clear comfort to take a hold.
This is most obvious in โBreakerโ, where Cox resumes โIโm alive / and thatโs something,โ while Pundt takes over vocal duty during the chorus, as well as taking the lead on the calmingly reassuring โTake Careโ. That of course doesnโt mean that Cox’s gleeful ambivalence and existential anxiety isnโt heard seeping through the cracks: โDuplex Planetโ is a melancholic rumination on ageing and dementia (a theme that seems to reoccur in Coxโs lyricst), โSnakeskinโ feels like an uncanny little sister to โSympathy for the Devilโ, and the odd ambient-ish track โLeather and Woodโ disrupts the pacing and leaves the listener with a strange unease.
Like its predecessor, Fading Frontier initially divided the band’s audience. While some felt it was too bright and sober in comparison to Deerhunterโs previous work, it also aligned itself perfectly with the atmosphere of late Obama-era bliss and spawned what was probably their best live shows, including regular 30-minute improvisational renditions of โNothing Ever Happenedโ. In a way, and out of the ashes of a near-death experience, Deerhunter seemed to have finally found their happy end.
Double Dream of Spring (2018)
After an extended break and odd ruminations of a line-up change, Deerhunter were back on tour and immediately announced a new cassette-only album. Titled after a de Chirico painting, Double Dream of Spring feels just like that: an obscure, experimental Deerhunter album youโd encounter in a dream. It reconnects with the aesthetics of their early CD-R releases, but abandons the noisy industrial leanings in favor of horns and keys. Many of the instrumental tracks seem to be built around gentle loops, which hint at Krautrock influences, while others such as โSerenity 1919 (Ives)โ revisit the eerie balladry of โDr. Glassโ.
Double Dream of Spring has become a much sought-after rarity, especially as any copy uploaded to the internet continues to be scrubbed away within hours of a drop. It exists in a strange spot, somewhere between insight into artistic development and loose jam session. Itโs fleeting and fragile and would likely collapse under widespread critical gazing. As it is, itโs a nice, brief glimpse of something delicate and personal.
Why Hasnโt Everything Already Disappeared? & “Timebends” (2019)
Officially adding keyboarder Javier Morales to the line-up, the band was back to a five piece โ the previously teased line-up changes had not materialized beyond the rumor stage. Following the release of cryptic typographic online art and extensive recording sessions led by Cate Le Bon, the band embarked on a sprawling pre-release tour, that came to a brief disruption when word arrived that former bassist Josh Fauver had died. Later on, Cox would reveal the two had finally reconnected and had been very close prior to his sudden death, so itโs eerie how one of the lasting themes on Why Hasnโt Everything Already Disappeared? is sudden death. And it wouldnโt be the only prophetic parallel here; since its release, Coxโs self-administered title of โprophet for the end timesโ seems to have proven true.
Thereโs an ongoing apocalyptic theme to be found on Disappeared? that ties directly back to Fluorescent Grey. โNo Oneโs Sleepingโ was written in the wake of the murder of UK politician Jo Cox, but now recalls the daily imagery of American protests. โElementโ is about climate change, but its anxious dissonance might as well have described the Covid-19 quarantine, reflections of which can also be heard in โDeath in Midsummerโ and โFuturismโ. And then thereโs โWhat Happens to People?โ, which revisits the themes of โDuplex Planetโ and could be as much about a passing relative as it seems to address the departed Fauver.
Under Le Bonโs watch, tracks like โGreenpoint Gothicโ, โTarnungโ and โDรฉtournementโ are sonically reminiscent of David Bowieโs Berlin trilogy โ probably what Cox meant when he characterized the overall aesthetic of the project as โbrutalistโ. Indeed, with its weird mixture of plucked strings, icy synths, Marimbas and eerie vocoder experiments, the record is the closest Deerhunter have come to fashion something that resembles Bowieโs Low. Itโs their most underrated work, as itโs the most nuanced, suggestive and multi-layered theyโve ever been.
On their post-release tour, the band added a violinist, which expands the songs into rich psychedelic tapestries, somewhere between Television and The Velvet Underground. They expanded this sound on the essential post-album track โTimebendsโ. Clocking in at over 12 minutes, the song is an almost lurid post-script, filled with Robert Fripp-styled guitars, tonal shifts and poetic imagery, that feels both like the closing of one chapter and the first rays of a new dawn โ only time will tell whether it’s a true indicator of whatโs to come from the continually evolving act.
