Essential Artists - Dirty Projectors

So I'm in the car with my family on the way back from a great vacation to the Upper Peninsula. Good things have happened; we got to take a boat tour along the beautiful Pictured Rocks lakeshore of Lake Superior, and I visited my FINAL location from Sufjan's "Greetings from Michigan!" album (Tahquamenon Falls, if you're interested). Bad things have also happened; have you ever seen a Golden Corral buffet after the post-church rush? Picture that, but instead of starving Methodists, swarms of Mosquitos, and instead of Golden Corral, my body (another church metaphor might be "Unholy Communion"). The second bad thing that happened was that I underestimated my reading ability and only brought three books. I just finished "Personal Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner" -  a wicked good read - And now I have three hours from Lansing to Upland with no reading material. Jared is usually entertaining but he's playing Pokemon Fire Red like a smart kid. Garrett is reading. Everyone else is asleep. Daaayyum. So now you guys get to hear about why I love Dirty Projectors.

Where to begin. Oh yeah, HARMONY. These people - especially the ladies - can sing like you wouldn't believe. Harmony can be annoying in large doses; whether it's simple ( I'm looking at you, Civil Wars) or complex (hey Crosby Stills and Nash... We get it), too much harmony is the same as too much anything - egregious. 

That being said, the Dirty Projectors wield harmony like a honed scimitar. This metaphor is twofold:

1. If you see someone swinging a scimitar, you're probably going to ask yourself "what the hell is that person doing?". In the same way, when you first hear "when the world comes to an end" you'll be incredulous.

2. Someone who is a scimitar expert is most likely both technically brilliant and really creative. Make the connection yourself.

Next is IRREGULARITY. Verse/chorus/verse/chorus/bridge/chorus is left on the doorstep like a bastard child and replaced with... Something. Very refreshing, and the irregularity serves a dual purpose; when they write a song like "stillness is the move," the steady rhythm sounds fresh to death. Being a closet Rush fan, I have a soft spot for irregular timing, especially when combined with

ESOTERIC AND UNCONVENTIONAL LYRICS

Ok I'm almost home so here's your intro playlist. Venture into the album Bitte Orca at your own risk, it's hard to listen to. But Swing lo Magellan is gold! Hit that first to build up your tolerance, then take a shot of Bitte Orca and, if you're really feeling frisky, Rise Above.

Stillness is the move

No intention

On and ever inward 

Two doves

About to die

Impregnable question

Unto Caesar