Dirty Projectors – Rise Above (Dead Oceans)
I discovered Black Flag’s Damaged in high school, and that is the best time to stumble onto that record. It opened my eyes to the possibility of other sonic ideas and was hugely important in creating a wider palate of musical enjoyment. I had never heard an album as angry as Damaged before. The members seemed like true disenfranchised youth that were regularly hassled by authorities and, as a result, their music sounded vicious, unhinged, and inspiring.
Damaged is one of those rare, unintentional masterpieces built on raw id and nursed on an oppressive environment. It’s something that cannot be duplicated and a style of music that is inherently attached to a genre that is purposefully limiting in approach.
In other words, the very idea of the Dirty Projectors’ David Longstreth setting out to “re-interpret” Black Flag’s Damaged from memory is one of the most elitist fucking things ever and, surprise, Rise Above is one of the most elitist fucking records ever made.