ALBUM REVIEW: Destroyer - Dan's Boogie
A boogie only Bejar could bring.
Listening to a Destroyer song is to hear every thought Dan Bejar has ever had all spill out at once. It’s a beautiful thing. He’s long been one of music’s most cryptic, fascinating lyricists, and in recent years he’s honed in on the finer details of his brand of sophistipop to make some of his best ever records. Dan’s Boogie is another excellent entry in this new Destroyer canon, a more observatory experience than the sonic carnival that was 2022’s LABYRINTHITIS but one that works in plenty of stormy moments within its meticulous sound.
The whole of Dan’s Boogie is draped under a banner of sophisticated indie rock, but he boogies in many ways under that description. Often the percussion leads the way, with explosive drum patterns midway through “Sun Meet Snow” giving the song a distinct flavor. But Bejar is just as likely to find a more pensive sound on the flip side. “The Ignoramus Of Love” wanders about its soulful melody, one full of peaceful strings and piano keys. That song even dedicates a good bit of its runtime to a synthesizer daydream, totally separate from its main melody. He’s has never been one to keep things the same, flipping both of these tracks on their head because he can.
Bejar has often said he “starts from scratch” with each Destroyer album, aiming to give each work of art its own distinct touch. Dan’s Boogie is maybe the least faithful of his recent albums to this mantra, with plenty of elements reminding me of past songs like “Crimson Tide” or “Dream Lover”. It’s also not as willing to be weird like LABYRINTHITIS was, but makes up for it in spades with Bejar’s usual attention to detail. No matter if the song is barely over a minute (I Materialize) or over eight (Cataract Time), there’s nary a moment on Dan’s Boogie that isn’t pristinely made. The album’s sonic culmination is its title track, a swirling number that breezily melds the percussion and piano with synth arpeggios and snazzy horns for an instant Destroyer classic. It’s gorgeous stuff; songs always sound like they belong together, restless but in a relaxing manner.
It’s always the listener’s guess as to what’s on Dan’s mind with his unmistakable approach to writing. There’s plenty of consternation about growing older if you can translate through how mystifying each couplet can be. Rather than try to decide for you, I’ll just give you some of my favorites:
“You fill your glass/You check out/A horse's ass/It's not bad” (Dan’s Boogie)
“I closed the book on The Book a thousand pages in/What's in a name - nothing!” (Ignoramus Of Love)
“I lie to myself, I lie down on the breeze/I whisper, "Hey, breeze, where ya going?"” (Hydroplaning Off the Edge of the World)
“The family curse was our signature scent/Mad scientist trapped inside a rose” (Sun Meet Snow)
“I wear see-through too much” (Cataract Time)
It’s Bejar at his inscrutable best. There’s no one else like him who can turn esoteric poetry into a catchy song. He willingly dives into oblivion (Hydroplaning Off the Edge Of the World) as quickly as he slowly walks into the darkness (Travel Light). Dan’s Boogie is a victory lap of sorts, taking its time to look back at what he’s accomplished and further rue just how far he’s come, both in life and in career. It’s never not interesting, just as any good album should be.
Verdict: 8.2/10
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