Bradford Cox sounds serene on Deerhunter’s Fading Frontier

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      Deerhunter
      Fading Frontier (4AD)

      If you happened to be at the Biltmore Cabaret back on October 30 of 2009, chances are that you will never forget the epic tantrum that Bradford Cox threw while making a disastrous solo appearance with his side project Atlas Sound, when he spent nearly his entire set cussing out the chatty audience. This was fairly characteristic behaviour for the Deerhunter frontman, who has long been known as a volatile, button-pushing provocateur.

      On his band’s latest full-length, however, Cox and his bandmates sound practically serene. Fading Frontier is a departure from the angry garage squall of 2013’s Monomania and from the sprawling postpunk haze of the outfit’s earlier work, as these nine songs magnify the pop leanings that were previously an undercurrent in Deerhunter.

      The soothing “Living My Life” is a particularly placid slice of beat-driven synth-pop, while “Breaker” boasts jangling arpeggios, acoustic guitar, and sighing harmonies. Even when the mellow vibes are momentarily disturbed—consider the spiky, lip-curling swagger of “Snakeskin”—Cox’s yowled delivery is more cheeky than angry, and the danceable funk grooves are cathartic rather than tense. These are the most straightforward, instantly satisfying songs in the group’s catalogue to date.

      So why are the Deerhunter dudes so levelheaded these days? Cox offers a philosophical explanation of sorts during the hypnotically chiming opener, “All My Life”. As the song crescendos, the singer triumphantly declares, “You should take your handicaps/Channel them and feed them back/Till they become your strengths.”

      Judging by the peaceful mood of Fading Frontier, we’d all be wise to heed this advice.

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