Deviant Nation : Of Montreal : Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?

Of Montreal - Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?

Label: Polyvinyl

By: tattooedgeek
Jan 27 07

7 Comments

Depression is palpable in his lyrics, but this is no lie-on-your-bed, yourself-to-sleep emo-boy album.

It's not often you hear an absolutely fantastic album that you could imagine hearing both in your just-off-campus-indie-hipster cd store or at a hot, rump-shakin' dance club, but Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? is just that.

Those familiar with Of Montreal's previous lo-fi, innocuous pop songs may be in for a quite a surprise. The Beatlesesque melodies and neo-psychedelic arrangements are now nicely intergrated with a new dance beat groove. While tracks from their former albums have waded in the waters of thier new style, this album plunges headfirst into the 70's glam-influenced synth beats.

The lead guitarist/singer Kevin Barnes of Athens, GA has traded his storytelling and characters for more introspective and dark lyrics than any of their past albums. Hissing Fauna was concieved while his then-seperated wife was with their newborn daughter halfway around the world. Depression is palpable in his lyrics, but this is no lie-on-your-bed, yourself-to-sleep emo-boy album. His acerbic wit as shown in the lyrics "I spent the winter on the verge of a total break / Down while living Norway/ I felt the darkness of a black metal band," coupled with great musical hooks makes this possible.

Of Montreal are currently on tour accross the United States and Canada. Also, a hillarious video direceted by the Brothers Chaps, creators of Homestar Runnner, for Heimdalsgate Like a Promethean Curse has popped up on YouTube. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VeIL7juFE0) Your life is not complete until you watch it, I promise you!

Similar artists: XTC, !!!, Apples in Stereo

track listing:
1. Suffer for Fashion
2. Sink the Seine
3. Cato as a Pun**
4. Heimdalsgate Like a Promethean Curse
5. Gronlandic Edit**
6. A Sentence of Sorts in Kongsvinger**
7. The Past is a Grotesque Animal
8. Bunny Ain't No Kind of Rider
9. Fabrege Falls for Shuggie
10. Labrinthian Pomp
11. She's a Rejector
12. We Were Born the Mutants Again with Leafling