Low - The Great Destroyer
By: Lindsay Bianchi | Category: Album Reviews | 01/23/06 | 11:01 PM
 |  |  Grade: A | Genre: Indie Rock
Summary: They scrubbed away the surface of ultra-hate to reveal music both dark and extremely passionate. The Great Destroyer could well be their masterpiece.
Known primarily as purveyors of exceedingly slow, molecule-halting tunes labeled as slowcore, Low has gradually moved towards a bigger and more complex sound that can safely be shelved with other serious rockers of the day. The Great Destroyer fills the room with music that is lyrically engaging and sonically captivating. Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker deliver another serving of their remarkable vocals surrounded this time by a backdrop of gorgeously heavy guitars. |
Whether acoustic or electric, the instrumentation resides firmly in minor chord mopiness. Even in its most tender passages, there is a deep and beautiful sadness to this record. To fans of Low, that will not be anything new. Low has always poured unflinching sincerity into their tough little songs. Listening to their music is kind of like being led down a dark hallway in the middle of the night toward something soft and glowing at the far end. I suppose that's sounds really vague and pretentious, but Low's unique sonic approach has continually evoked a nocturnal weirdness that's hard to pin down.
Early outings like The Curtain Hits The Cast trudged by like a string of dirges in shorthand. The snails pace was almost unbearable, but the melodies, quiet and hauntingly melodious tended to bore their way into your brain. They surrounded you as Sparhawk and Parker sang cryptic lyrics like "Mom says/The astronauts will bring it home/Mom says/The car won't make it to the lake/ But I don't know." One song, "Coattails" has one lyric, "He rides on coattails." There is plenty that can be insinuated from that simple statement. The music does the rest.
Now the band has opened up their sound. Things get much, much louder. That doesn't mean the melody is gone. This isn't AC/DC. There's gobs of substance to these songs and they are sung with absolute vocal perfection. Drenched in echoes without sacrificing clarity, co-producer Dave Fridman (of Mercury Rev fame) frames the words in a great massive sound that is at once folk, psychedelic, artsy, and of course, totally rockin'!
The more I listen to it, the more the hooks get me, and the more I realize what a great record The Great Destroyer is. I am reminded of a double album from the 80's that has the same sort of long birth as this one.
"Children of God" by New York's Swans emerged from a band whose previous releases had names like "Filth" and sounded like your stereo was having a meltdown. Eventually they scrubbed away the surface of ultra-hate to reveal music both dark and extremely passionate. That's what Low has accomplished here. They started at the opposite end of the spectrum with ultra-quiet ballads akin to folky funeral marches. The Great Destroyer could well be their masterpiece.
Bands like Low and Swans pull no punches. If they say it, they mean it. And usually it's something you've never heard, but didn't know you wanted to hear. Although bassist Zak Sally is reportedly leaving the band, drawing the curtain on part one of Low's career, this release proves once and for all that the trio have carved out a singular place in the annals of modern rock music.
Their stark narratives are most affecting. I never really care if a band's lyrics make sense or not. In fact, the more convoluted and cryptic, the better. I always trust that they know what it is they are singing about. If there is sincerity in their voice, passion in the refrain, then I feel whatever it is that said band is trying to get across. Low have been able to get their musical message out without being verbose. "Your march is over/The great destroyer/She passes through you like a knife/Oh take me with you/You silver rider/Sometimes your voice is not enough."
Part of the fun of listening to songs like these is letting them mean whatever they mean to you. Maybe someday you'll see the references, allowing what has become an old favorite to resonate even deeper. Regardless, these are very personal songs, almost invasive in their unwavering honesty.
There is much to be said for the mystery inherent in the arts. Low have played things close to the vest. We can be grateful for that. Now if we could only learn to be less verbose about it.
Posting Date: January 25, 2005
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