Album Review: Rainwater Cassette Exchange [EP]

Deerhunter’s last EP, Flourescent Grey, instantly found its way on my short-list for greatest EP releases of this or any decade. The band followed that up with Microcastle/Weird Era Cont., an even more impressive album (and companion) that was Fishpork’s favorite of 2008. One wonders how long a band with such a prolific work ethic can continue to release material that continues to astound us. Fortunately, Deerhunter’s Rainwater Cassette Exchange EP is not the release that answers that question. Bradford Cox and company do it yet once again and deny blog haters who label them a hype band. Rainwater Cassette Exchange sounds different than Microcastle (which sounded different from Flourescent Grey, which sounded different than Cryptograms). Deerhunter have noticeably matured since the critically-acclaimed Crytpograms. They are no longer content with loud, repetitive soundscapes found on that release and have explored more traditional song structures, melody, and vocal harmonies.

We first stumbled upon new material for RCE via a video of a live performance at Deerhunter’s Atlanta-based rehearsal space for Disappearing Ink on MTV2. The studio version of the track ends up surpassing the original but is still not the highlight of the EP. That honor comes with the last two songs of the five-track record, “Game of Diamonds” and “Circulation.” If this is the new direction that Deerhunter is going in, I’m all for it. The tribal percussion of “Game of Diamonds,” which was posted as an early unfinished version on the Deerhunter blog, and the haunting vocal delivery of champion of pain Bradford Cox provide a softer and more realized vision. The record is anchored by the brilliantt “Circulation,” which could easily be a continuation of last year’s Microcastle. The song begins as a somewhat straightforward pop song but delves into dreamy noise experimentation shortly after the 2:00 mark. The track is definitely a highlight in a year of already epic releases. Deerhunter’s Rainwater Cassette Exchange EP was released today on Kranky Records. You can stream the title track below: