Sound bite: "Destroyer's Rubies"
By Daily Bruin Staff
Feb. 22, 2006 9:00 p.m.
Destroyer “Destroyer’s Rubies” Merge
Records Destroyer’s Dan Bejar has been many things:
erstwhile member of The New Pornographers, explosive rock
guitarist, folk-pop troubadour and engrossing storyteller capable
of sketching worlds of literate references and intricate
characterizations. “Destroyer’s Rubies,”
Bejar’s seventh album, is as multifaceted as its intriguing
creator, taking the dramatic sprawl of ’70s rock albums such
as David Bowie’s “Ziggy Stardust” and Elton
John’s “Madman Across the Water” and expanding it
to near-epic proportions. From “Rubies” opening guitar
chord, the album revels in its full, robust instrumentation. This
is the most exuberant album in ages, a joyful culmination of
Bejar’s melodic aspirations. The nine-minute opening song is
a microcosm of the album as a whole ““ rather than using
repetition or indulgent jams to extend its length, every moment of
the track is planned and choreographed in a continuous forward
motion. After a distorted introduction, a faux-flamenco section
begins the song in earnest before the launch of major-scale
electric guitars and scattershot drumming ““ and that’s
just the first two minutes. Bejar’s voice, now more confident
than ever, is an instrument as well, and every song contains some
form of wordless “la-da-da” refrain. But beyond the
sheer energy of the music lies a richly envisioned collection of
songs as complex as they are accessible. Assuming the role of
self-aware narrator, Bejar’s subversive lyrics touch on
everything from previous albums and his own fictional mythology, to
the modern world and rock music itself. “Those who love
Zeppelin will soon betray Floyd/ I cast off these couplets in honor
of the void,” he sings in “A Dangerous Woman Up To A
Point.” This lyric simultaneously acknowledges his
predecessors while separating himself from them. In the title
track, he addresses the persona Ruby in a jab at his own artistic
development: “I wanted you, I wanted your blues/ too!”
“Your Blues” is Destroyer’s previous album, but
the real focus is on the worth of these songs. When Bejar sings on
“Looters’ Follies,” “I swear looters’
follies has never sounded so good,” he sounds desperate
rather than self-congratulatory. In the same song, he claims
“that a life in art and a life of mimicry ““ it’s
all the same!” As metacritical and referential as it may be,
satire this album is not. Bejar has crafted an exciting, visceral
pop playground, and “Destroyer’s Rubies” is too
full of life, too brimming with personality, to be anything less
than the largest jewel in his heavy crown.
“”mdash; David Greenwald
