Atlas Sound: Logos
ALBUM REVIEW: Atlas Sound – Logos
words: Jamie Milton
The career of Bradford Cox, under the moniker Atlas Sound and fronting critical darlings Deerhunter, is indeterminate. The sporadic means by which Cox writes and releases his songs highlights this; songs are leaked by himself at times, other times they’re leaked by others. He goes weeks without writing a song and then he’ll release a good twenty tracks in six months. Make note that at any time he could pack it in without looking back. He is in the fullest control of his own actions and it was his decision to make ‘Logos’, the second Atlas Sound release, simply something to pass by, not stop at, when speeding past the increasingly lengthy collation of his achievements.
That’s not to say ‘Logos’ isn’t up to standard with the rest of Cox’s output. But there’s just a general sense of carelessness and spaciousness that at times hinders the album but at the same time, is its greatest asset.
This is an album following the example made by ‘Weird Era. Cont‘, the accompanying “b-sides package” that came with last year’s full-length ‘Microcastle‘. It to some extent exceeded its superior because of its rousing ability to sound not half-arsed, but almost purposefully lax. Genres, ideas, came and went in the space of thirty seconds. What sounded like unfinished pieces of music somehow managed to fit together like a puzzle, with nothing spared. That’s how ‘Weird Era…‘ worked and that’s exactly how ‘Logos’ works.
Because on ‘Logos’ you’re presented with not just the sporadic imagination of Bradford Cox. Here, he arrives hand in hand with members of Stereolab and Animal Collective, their guest appearances slotting songs that sound – you guessed it – like Animal Collective and Stereolab songs, in between quintessential, hazy Cox-led material. Detached, ‘Walkabout’ is a childish, sharp anthem questioning the aspirations of one’s future – “what do you want to be when you grow up?” Laetitia Sadier’s appearance on ‘Quick Canal’ too, is more than just a centerpiece. A knife-edged, stop-start bassline contrasting to the glossy company comprised primarily by Sadier’s clear, streamlined vocals (the complete opposite of Cox’s own). In album format, they sound completely out of place but make no mistake: they’re the masterstrokes of a difficult album to get your head around.
When the limelight is set upon him, Cox plays the role of incognito, swimming uneasily between indecipherable, jerk-noise on ‘Kid Klimax’ to the more destined ‘Criminals’, boasting one of the finest melodies to come from Cox’s busy brain to date.
‘Logo’’s letdown comes from the tracklisting. He pits his more accessible material for the early stages, unleashing the more Deerhunter-esque material, ‘Orchid’ and the delicate ‘The Light That Failed’ at the very beginning of the album. The latter half comprises of material less well-rounded and harder to tackle. For the listener, this makes for a record that appears, at least at first glance, peculiarly top-heavy.
But by the time he’s finished, Cox will eventually have enough records under his belt for newcomers to be forced to retreat into hand-picking individual songs rather than albums when it comes to investigating his work for the first time. ‘Logos’ is not where his career peaks but it is yet another ruthless reminder that among us is one of the most creative, free-thinking talents for some time.
MFM @ HYPEM
