Review: Do Make Say Think - Goodbye Enemy Airship the Landlord is Dead
This afternoon, I sat down and ate a (number of) mince pie(s) and started listening through my 'to do' list. Goodbye Enemy Airship the Landlord is Dead is the third album release from Canadian post-rock veterans Do Make Say Think. Released in 2000 on Constellation records, I had been meaning to give this a listen for a while. I now can't believe I waited - this album is an absolute delight.
As an album, the 7 instrumental tracks, ranging from 3:40 to 12:38 minutes, are dark, evocative and funny. The band's distinctive sound is full of deep, intelligent bass, and this album is distinctive, precise, and well developed. Goodbye Enemy Airship kicks off with 'When the Day Chokes the Night', a slow-paced opener that's a little Mars Volta-esque. The second track, 'Minim' is dreamy and soulful. The next track, 'The Landlord is Dead', is one of the album's highlights - edgy and low-key, with a jazzy, sad sound. It offers nice drum licks, and plenty of distortion, while strong, minor-key harmonies build up to an epic, paranoid climax.
'The Apartment Song' is another stand-out track, combining even more bass with lovely drums. The song is more conventionally structured - if we're going to do comparisons, this track is more Radiohead than Godspeed. With the swing-ish start of 'All of This is True', the album's dark mood lifts a little, and the band combine a rhythmic, staccato melody with a deep bass and jazzy drums. The second part of the song builds up from scratch, with spaceship (maybe a theremin?) noises adding texture.
'Bruce E Kinesis' offers more dark bass, with a melody on an organ kicking in at the half-way mark. Finally, the album rounds off with the thoughtful 'Goodbye Enemy Airship', a smooth, laid-back song, with lovely layers of sound and a lot going on. The album is strong, cohesive, and varied, and has a hell of a lot to offer. This will be going on heavy rotation on my Spotify from now on.
Highlights: The Landlord is Dead, The Apartment Song, Bruce E Kinesis
Full disclosure: Nothing to declare
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