by Ollie Rankine

Having now tucked 20 years of sporadic, noise rock-induced chaos under their belts, San Francisco quartet Deerhoof reveal no intention of pulling the plug from the amplifier any time soon. Being no stranger to distortion that’s so dirty you can taste it, Deerhoof continue their illustrious career with the volume remaining well and truly turned up to eleven with their 17th album, The Magic. Although their back catalogue spans from influences reaching punk, jazz and funk, Deerhoof have retained a consistently recognisable sound that sways between avant-garde to the outright bizarre. Proving to be a more accessible listening experience than previous records, Deerhoof continue to impress with their no-holds-barred approach and recurring sense of freedom within their song writing.

Priming the album’s magnitude and frantic pace right from the off, first track ‘The Devil And His Anarchic Surrealist Retinue’ rips through the speakers in a frenzy of guitar thrashes and intermittent synth jabs. Equally balancing the audio’s density to the funk-coated basslines, tracks ‘Life Is Suffering’ and ‘Model Behaviour’ provide The Magic with the gritty groove it set out to create. Although Japanese frontwoman Satomi Matsuzaki’s vocal is often difficult to make sense of, the piercing and nihilistic lyrics act as the suitable ambience to each track and once again provides Deerhoof with their unmistakable audio aesthetic. Rarely producing anything remotely subject to disappointment, Deerhoof continue to roll upon the peripherals of rock music with no sign of adjusting their speed. (8/10)

Listen to The Magic here via Spotify, and tell us what you think below!