Dirty Projectors - Lamp Lip Prose

Dirty Projectors are the long-time project of David Longstreth and company, who over the years I've had a rocky relationship with.  Around the time of their "The Glad Fact" debut, I really didn't know what to think.  I found myself absolutely adoring David's very soulful and wild performances, who right from the start was just such a commanding presence.  And yea, that lead to some really great tracks like "My Offwhite Flag" and "Three Brown Finches".  But it also lead to a lot of sort of odd, Artsy moments that would just come off so much more interesting as the band progressed and worked with some better production.  And honestly, I have a whole lot of the same feelings about 2003's "Morning Better Last'.  This album was stripped down, and best at it's most Artsy, like on "My Brother Had A Birthday".  And I still was totally into David's very soulful performances, but I just really was sick of this stripped down, Low-Fi feel.  But with 2004's "Slaves Graves and Ballads", Dirty Projectors really started to get cooking.  This album had loads better production, and it did wonders for the bands sound.  David sounded so much more confident and commanding as a singer, and more often than not actually sounded really incredible here.  And the lavish instrumentation that took the place of the earlier Low-Fi Indie Rock was an absolute joy. And while some of the later tracks like "Ladies, You Have Exiled Me" and "A Labor More Restful" weren't my cup of tea, this album was a remarkable change of pace.   Then we have the slightly more challenging 2005 release of "The Getty Address".  Now, the story behind this album is wildly convoluted to say the very least.  But David and company continued to sound wonderfully colorful by continuing with this cleaner production route.  Tracks like the elaborate "I Will Truck" and the hazy "D. Henley's Dream" were absolutely beautiful.  And while this was still an album you really had to turn your mind on to listen to, I wasn't bored.  But for me, I really started getting blown away with Dirty Projector's work with 2007's re-imagining of Black Flag's classic "Damaged".  With the addition of more musicians, most notably Amber Coffman on vocals, this seemed so much less more of a vanity project.  David Longstreth was still the star and a great one at that.  But the music of Dirty Projectors seemed more lavish and interesting than ever.  This album has some of their wildest and most elaborate tracks to date.  The performances are charismatic, the instrumentals are creative, the production remained clean, and there are some genuinely wild re-imaginings on here as well.  And while yea, sometimes it got out of hand, like the horribly drawn out "Thirsty and Miserable", this was Dirty Projector's most genuinely likable project to date. Dirty Projectors continued to expand their sound with 2009's "Bitte Orca", their most stunning album to date.  Now with the vocal chops of Angel Deradoorian added, Dirty Projectors were a serious force to be reckoned with in Art Pop.  This album was the collective's most accessible and genuinely catchy album to date.  But it still demanded 100% attention and was still genuinely wild and experimental in its entirety.  David Longstreth didn't just seem like a one-man band anymore, he sounded like a genuine Art Pop God, one that was fearless, and one that could write a Pop sound that would challenge you while remaining just as infectious.  "Bitte Orca" is still a tough album to digest at times, but it's a modern masterpiece.  Dirty Projectors returned in 2012 with "Swing Low Magellan", and even more beautiful album.  Now, while this album wasn't as instantaneous and catchy as their previous album, the vocals of Amber, Angel, and David had seemingly got even more charming.  Not to mention, I feel like the instrumentals all around were just so much more skilled.  I may have been looking for a slightly more instantaneous album, but this was still wildly likable.  Now, we all know what happened next, between the break up of Amber Coffman and David Longstreth, drama within the band, yadda yadda yadda.  A whole mess of people was wondering about the future of Dirty Projectors.  David returned to the project however in 2017 with the release of the project's self-titled album.  This album was a huge departure from the very artsy and elegant past of the group, and in its place was the breakup album of the year.  David at this point sounded so bruised and legitimately hurt, and this album was an absolute portrait of a broken man.  And it's surprisingly really really good.  David's lyrics had never been this human and easy to read into, and while the group had always sort of dabbled in Alternative R&B, this album went all out with it.  And not for nothing, "Up In Hudson" may just be the best Dirty Projectors track, period.  And honestly, I wasn't expecting to hear from Dirty Projectors this soon, but here we are.  Now, these singles have been a little all over the place, ranging from god awful to genuinely solid.  Let's chat about it, friends!

This album starts off with the very light and sweet intro of “Right Now”, which is literally the epitome of what I’ve come to expect from Dirty Projectors.  We have some very fluttering guitar chords, some elegant horns, and David’s vocals which seem to just get better as he ages. There are still some Alternative R&B influences tossed in, and David continues to work with some really left-field production which actually works awesome.  And we also have Syd here of The Internet, who also just has come into her own so much over the last few years.  While this isn’t the most stunning intro, it’s a fine intro that shows what David has been up to. Now, when I first heard “Break-Thru” I really wasn’t into it at all.  It just seems to me like David is putting on way too much of an act.  I like some of the elements here and all, like the bluesy harmonica and the tight guitar playing.  All of that is totally fine.  But David’s performance here, while it’s totally energetic just comes off so stiff.  Not to mention, this one overall is so safe.  I wanted to dig “Break-Thru”, but I cant, even with the very sunny sound of it all.  On the other hand “That’s A Lifestyle” does pick up nicely with some more upbeat Folky guitars and some rhythms that are genuinely hard to place.   But David here sounds so much more on his game, from his heavenly falsettos to his more bluesy vocals, this one all around has him sounding much more comfortable.  It’s a quirky number, its some solid playing all around.  In a way, it actually sounds like a stripped down version from one of the band’s truly great albums.  It’s breezy and playful.  But call me weird, but I feel like so far I really haven’t heard David come out of his shell too much.  Thankfully “I Feel Energy” has the album starting to pick up.  I absolutely love the series of fine grooves here, and just how genuinely funky everything comes off.  The horns are lively, and David’s performance is easily one of his bluesiest and genuinely cool here.  The production is flashy, and here we finally get a taste of David really getting comfortable.  Now, he’s dabbled in seemingly endless genres and sounds over the years.  But this is some of the most obvious dive into World Music David has ever touched. And honestly, it excites the hell out of me, and I can’t wait to hear more of this. 

Then we get “Zombie Conqueror” which is a real treat.  Instrumentally this is one of the wildest and hardest to place tracks of the album, with these guitars that are constantly jumping all over the place.  There’s almost an old-school, sort of Celtic Rock feel to this in a way. But it works, and really brings out some of David’s most passionate and wild performances of this album.  Not to mention, the guitars here are strangely so much heavier than anything I’ve heard out of Dirty Projectors in a while.  It’s a genuinely exciting and invigorating track.  And I really do have to give David credit.  Obviously, he lost a lot with Amber and Angel leaving.  But he didn’t replace them but brought in some seriously phenomenal guests like Empress Of.  Then we have the very charming, Baroque Pop inspired “Blue Bird”.  It’s a sweet, fluttering track that has plenty of David’s most beautiful vocals of the album.  It’s breezy and very pleasant, even if this sort of doesn’t sound particularly fresh.  Once again, this does sort of sound like a watered down version of something from a truly great Dirty Projectors project.  Which no, isn’t bad, but I wanted something a little more extravagant.  “I Found It In U” is up next, and I really don’t know where all of these serious grooves are coming from, but I’m all for it.  Dirty Projectors have always been a sort of “experience” of a band.  But this track is different, and seriously fun, which is something that David hasn’t gone all out within a very long time.  In a weird way, I almost get a sort of Paul Simon vibe from this, and that’s far from a bad thing.  Not to mention, in general, it’s just so pleasant to hear David working with material that shows him being more positive and happy.   On the other hand, “What Is The Time” brings things down a little for a ballad that brings in a lot of the sort of R&B vibes that Dirty Projectors have been working with.  But sadly, it’s these tracks that drag this album down.  This one is unbearably cheesy, almost to the point where it comes off ballsy.   Some of the horns sound recycled practically, and this one just sounds so tossed together.  And I feel bad cause David sounds actually really great.  But overall, “What is The Time” is average. 

Thankfully, “You’re The One” featuring Robin Pecknold and Rostam gets things rolling again in a big way.  Some of the harmonies here from David and Robin are absolutely to die for and make me melt inside.   I have to commend David, he continues to nail it with these features.  But I also have to point out the elephant in the room, this is by far the most romantic album I’ve heard from David in years.  As far as a genuine bald goes, this track is stunning.  It’s short, but it’s mighty impactful.  But of all of the tracks here, “(I Wanna) Feel It All” has the most legitimate sorrow to it.  Almost to the point where it’s all done so well without those very dreary horns.  They work through rather nicely and honestly, sounds like it would have been comfortable on the band's last album.  But man, talk about the elephant in the room.  This really isn’t that bad of a song.  But to wrap up the album with this is just fucking depressing.  And Dear Nora's contributions are some of the weakest of the entire album. 

Rating: 7.6/10

Give A Listen To: “I Feel Energy”, “Zombie Conqueror”, “I Found It In U”, “You’re The One”

Least Favorite Track: “(I Wanna) Feel It All”

Genre: Art Pop / Art Rock / Experimental Pop

Overall Thoughts:  In just about every way, this is literally the polar opposite of Dirty Projectors album from last year.  That was a deep, groovy and soulful breakup album.  This album, on the other hand, is often joyous and carefree and shows David back to singing about love.  Which for the most part is a nice change of pace.  David brings in some fierce guests, and almost some Funk and World Music influences to make one of his most colorful albums in years.  But at the same time, there are a few tracks that sound like David is trying maybe a little too hard, or trying to do a little too much.  But while it’s not as beautiful and emotional as their last year's album, this is still a very solid release in David’s legendary Dirty Projectors songbook.