Deserter's Songs

The orchestral, eerie opener "Holes" couples Donahue's creepy yet beautiful voice with bowed saws, majestic violins, and the gorgeous flutework of Suzanne Thorpe. A track that sweeps the listener to and fro. Delicate drums, calm acoustic guitar work...it's a sensational opener.

"Tonite it Shows" is a fairy-tale-esque song backed by once again dreamlike violins and flutes, along with Donahue's stunning lyrics. Lines like "The way you were/long before/you were a walking civil war" act like a chilling opposition to the dreamy instrumentation in the song.

"Endlessly" follows with gentle guitar picking, beautiful falsetto choir vocals, and that damn lovely bowed saw. Incorporating "Silent Night" into it just makes it even better.

"I Collect Coins" conjures up an early 1900's nostalgia, with its waltzy piano and vinyl scratches.

"Opus 40." God, what can be said about "Opus 40." Yes it's a single, but it's just to smart to be one. Yes, the slight drumming and majestic orchestrations are heart-wrenching, but Donahue's lyrics are just plain remarkable. "Catskill mansions buried screams/I'm alive she cried but I don't know what it means/somewhere out there across the moonlit sands/There's a line drawn like the lines on her own hand" could quite possible one of my favorite lyrics of all the music I have ever listen to.

The Grasshopper-penned "Hudson Line" is a fun romp that infuses crunching guitar and jazzy mellotron. It also shows that just because Grasshopper is usually confined to his role as a multi-instrumentalist, he can still create some intriguing lyrics like "technicolor raindrops wash gumballs down the drain."

The second instrumental, "The Happy End (The Drunk Room)" acts as a continuation to "I Collect Coins", once again evoking images of 1900's civilization dancing around a spacious ballroom.

"Goddess On A Hiway" is another clever single. Again, lyrically Donahue has hit the mark as he does throughout the album. The simple distinction between "Got Us on a Hiway" and "Goddess on a Hiway" is interesting and provokes some well-deserved beard-stroking. "Goddess" could possibly considered the most straightforward song on the album, even if it is an intelligent single.

"Funny Bird" is wonderful space rock song, starting off slowly with thumping drums and gentle bass. As the song progreses, it builds and builds until if finally explodes into a world of whacked-out guitar and furious bass. A truly excellent track.

"Pick Up if You're There" acts as the closer to the instrumental's story, circa 1900's. If prepares the listener for bombastic closer.

"Delta Sun Bottleneck Stomp" is perhaps the most radical song on the album, fusing the characteristics of dance with a traditional jazz and rock. Slide gutar, thumping bass, pulsing rythms... it's all there. As the song comes to a tumultous end, the interesting experimental leanings of the group come into place and fiddle around with the listener's ears before coming to abrupt stop.

Well, there you have at, a song-by-song analysis of this masterful piece of music. "Deserter's Song" is not only a great instrumentally, but also lyrically. Donahue's warped lyrics are some of the most uniqe and thought-provoking lyrics I have ever heard. Plus, Dave Fridmann's bass is outstanding throughout the album, particularly on "Funny Bird" and "Delta Sun Bottleneck Stomp." It took me nearly two years to discover the potential of "Deserter's Songs", and let's just say I'm glad that these guys are around to make music once again so pertinent to not only the music industry, but to the world.

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For another standout, seek out `Goddess on A Hiway': a downbeat verse with a simple yet effective tune and rhythmic piano and bass, suddenly rushing into a heartbreaking, epic, huge chorus of `And I know it ain't gonna last', all horns and strings and guitars creating a magnificent, larger than life sound.

These are perfect pop songs: not like horrible pop, but wonderfully experimental and beautiful: uplifting one moment and swimming with sadness the next, sometimes both at once. The horns, flutes and strings provide fantastic accompaniment to Jonathan's distinctive, high pitched, beautifully delicate voice. This could never be the falsetto of Thom Yorke, Chris Martin, or any similar British indie movers and shakers, but is quite clearly his own. Mercury Rev are American, but have more of a fanbase in Britain than in their native country.

In fact, though, this CD is full of old American influences, dug out from the bands' vinyl collections, long forgotten by all others but beautifully restored to life by this band. For proof, check out `The Hudson Line', the only song with lead vocals by guitarist Grasshopper, a driving, rhythmic bluesy track with an intoxicating, jazzy rhythm section and wild saxophone and guitar solos. Or `Tonite It Shows', a dreamy ballad that could have been lifted from any decade in American music between the 40s and the 90s.

Another dreamy track is `Endlessly', with its acoustic guitar arpeggios, choral singing, harp and horns. This sounds like it could have been taken from an old movie soundtrack and is touching. The Funny Bird also opens with the mood of movie music, but the vocals which enter have an effect on them which makes them sound experimental and lend a new mood. The track morphs round and round and is possibly the most ambitious song on the album, featuring huge strings accompaniments, yet also guitars, cymbal crashes and walking bass. This is fantastic stuff.

Stranger still is closer `Delta Sun Bottleneck Stomp', beginning with harpsichord, then adding horns and a thudding bass and drum rhythm that could have been taken from a dance track, and country-style acoustic guitar. There is a bit of piano showmanship, and `stomp' describes the track very accurately.

The other three tracks are instrumentals: `I Collect Coins', `The Happy End (The Drunk Room)' and `Pick Up If You're There'. The first two of these both sound like old recordings: `I Collect Coins' being a piano and horn piece that deliberately crackles like an old record and could easily have come out of the 30s or 40s, and `The Happy End' being an unnerving, slightly sinister, somewhat discordant piece, which again sounds very old and is difficult to listen to. `Pick Up If You're There' sounds like modern soundtrack music to a film in a quiet but creepy bit, all sinister keyboard chords and quiet organ, joined by strings about halfway through.

One thing Mercury Rev are brilliant at is creating moods. Even in the instrumentals which lack Jonathan's fantastic lyrics, moods are conveyed and feelings and styles penetrate right into the listener's brain, even if they are difficult to put into words. Mercury Rev can paints soundscapes with their music, a true gift, and here is a CD full of fantastic, beautiful tracks whose feeling shines through. Wonderful. 5 stars.

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I used to have this problem with this CD. It went like this. I would need to do some homework, and I would put Deserter's Songs on as background music. But before I could get started on the work, I would be drawn in by the haunting strings at the beginning of "Holes". I would sit still, waiting for that magic moment when Jonathan Donahue's voice comes in for the first time. I'd be sitting there staring into space, thinking about how the music sounded like rich dark colors, crimson and sea-blue, and what does he mean when he says "Holes, dug by little moles, angry jealous spies, got telephones for eyes"? Then--oh, the song is over. Time to get some work done.

But then "Tonite it Shows" comes on. I try to work, but mostly I'm kind of staring through the page. I'm concentrating on the lovely changes in the melody. Track 3--"Endlessly". Hmm, interesting-of all the songs with vocals, this is the only one without any water imagery. But it does mention ships, so maybe that counts. This isn't the best song, I think, but it's very pretty. Jonathan really does have a beautiful voice. I smile dreamily.

OK. This next track is an instrumental--"I Collect Coins". Now I can get some work done. But my concentration keeps on wandering to the fact that "Opus 40" is about to start. And the instrumental is short. And then "Opus 40" does start, and I fall over in a panic attack of amazement. Since when is music allowed to be this good?

The guitarist Grasshopper takes over lead vocals on the next track, and it's a nice change. His voice isn't as unique as Jonathan's, but it's good in its own way. Once again, it is impossible to concentrate. Interesting lyrics here--I'm fond of the line "Mercury is falling, yeah who forgot to pray?"

Another instrumental, during which I stare continuously at the same paragraph, debating whether I should really try to read it. But before I can come to a conclusion...oh yes..."Goddess on a Hiway" begins.

If you've heard this track, then you understand. If you haven't, I'm telling you that the album is worth it just for this song. Reading the line "And I know, it ain't gonna last" on paper will never be a substitute for hearing the melody that goes with it. Oh, the power.

You'd think I'd manage to get a little work done, now that the album's best track is over. Wrong. Because they follow it up with "The Funny Bird", a mysterious, atmospheric song with filtered vocals and a storm-at-sea feel. Sometimes I think this song is even better than the preceding one. The first few seconds are incredible--a couple of quick ascending notes on the keyboard, simple and unadorned, suddenly crash into a huge ocean-like wash of sound that remains for the rest of the song. Good stuff.

"The Funny Bird" leads into "Pick Up If You're There", one of the best instrumental songs I've ever heard, and that includes the works of Mogwai, Tortoise, et al. With an extremely sad mood, it's actually just as expressive as the songs with vocals. I chew the pencil as my mind conjures gray-blue images of a dark, lonely house by an ocean.

The last song, "Delta Sun Bottleneck Stomp", would be okay to do homework by, if it weren't for the fact that it's so darn good and it's kind of happy for a change and I want to dance around the room. Instead, I settle for just sitting there grinning, thinking, "I love this album." I haven't gotten any homework done, and that's okay, man. Mercury Rev exists, and all is right in the world. Yeah.

Now, I've just been describing my reactions during the first few weeks of owning this album. I should also mention that this was nearly my very first exposure to what is often known as indie music (I credit Mercury Rev for permanently altering the direction of my musical tastes, away from the likes of Coldplay, toward the underground and obscure). At the time I'd never heard anything like it, so naturally, it had to seem amazingly good. But, naivete aside, this is still a very strong album, in my opinion. Bear in mind that your individual results may vary.

I've had the CD for several months now, so the initial thrill has worn off somewhat--as it does for all music. Nowadays, of course, I don't die of astonishment every time I hear it, and I've discovered that, besides being excellent music for close listening, it really is very good background music, once you're used to the songs. But I still love the album, yes. It has aged well. It still elicits strong reactions from me. I'm giving it four stars because 1) five stars is reserved for a classic on the level of Modest Mouse's The Moon and Antarctica; 2) I don't want to add to the hype more than necessary; and 3) I'd like it to be a little more...substantial. The first two instrumentals are kind of throwaway, and if it was cut down to just the 5 or 6 best songs, you'd have a really killer EP. But I'm nitpicking. Deserter's Songs is great. Check it out. It'll do you good.

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