ARTIST: Dianogah
TITLE: QHNNNL
LABEL: Southern Records
GENRE: Indie
BITRATE: 200kbps avg
PLAYTIME: 0h 40m total
RELEASE DATE: 2008-06-24
RIP DATE: 2009-04-23
Track List
----------
1. Oneone 4:43
2. A Breaks B 3:56
3. QHNNNL 2:53
4. Andrew Jackson 4:19
5. Sprinter 3:29
6. I Like Juice In A Shark Suit 3:51
7. ┐Es Posible Fuego? 4:10
8. You Might Go Off 2:14
9. Snowpants 4:04
10. Puma 2:28
11. Song You Hate 1:42
12. Mongrel 2:57
Release Notes:
http://www.myspace.com/dianogahband
ItÆs been six years since the last album from ChicagoÆs Dianogah, and in that
time theyÆve decided to start singing. Half of the songs on their new, and
strangely titled album, Qhnnnl feature vocals, some from the band themselves,
some from guest vocalist Stephanie Morris. But rather than using vocals as a
sort of reinvention, the band is using them to extend their sonic palate in new
directions. Lyrics arenÆt simply laid on top of the bandÆs hefty and wandering
compositions. Instead, they are woven into them, like a new instrument
introduced into the fold, giving the album a nice sense of both variety and
emotional weight.
The inclusion of vocals here also shows just how much the band can do with so
little. The core band, made up of bassists Jay Ryan and Jason Harvey and drummer
Kip McCabe, use their spartan line-up to make music that is anything but. The
bass lines interweave and bounce off each other, with one laying a solid
foundation for the otherÆs noodling before they reverse roles mid-song. And
McCabeÆs drumming is as sturdy and straight-ahead fierce as it is intricate.
And they take their dynamic musicianship and knack for surprising
instrumentation in many different directions on Qhnnnl. ThereÆs the chunky bass
lines of ôOneoneö that the band speed up and slow down by degrees, making for a
track that is driving while at the same time subtle jarring. ôI Like Juice in a
Shark Tankö is a brilliant combination of DianogahÆs usual muscular post-punk
meshed with droning distortion and ringing moments of quiet.
And those more immediate tracks are surrounded by songs that are more patient
and lush. With Stephanie MorrisÆ sweet vocals and violin on some tracks courtesy
of Andrew Bird, the band explores some more textured and quiet moments on this
record. On ôA Breaks Bö, Ryan and Harvey pile the bass notes on top of each
other, but play them soft, giving the spotlight to chanting vocals and the lilt
if BirdÆs strings. ôAndrew Jacksonö puts BirdÆs instrumentation entirely in the
spotlight. Dianogah keep a steady and compelling beat going, with plenty of deep
bass throb, but the keening of the violin is what drives the track, adding a
more human element to the song in the same way the vocals do on other tracks.
But these new and beautiful steps forward in texture havenÆt robbed Dianogah of
their knack for getting loud. The title track is a thrashing,
dragged-through-the-mud bit of noise rock, and sandwiched between ôA Breaks Bö
and ôAndrew Jacksonö, it serves as the perfect storm between two ghostly calms.
Later in the record, ôYou Might Go Offö is a two-minute surge of punk energy.
And ôSong You Hateö anchors the back half of the record with its angular
post-punk grit.
All in all, Qhnnnl is a logical next step for Dianogah, following the great
Millions of Brazillians. But what makes it so much more than that, what makes it
a big step forward, is how well it is executed. The vocals here may not add
another layer by way of compelling lyrics, but they add another dimension to
music that seemed to have already reached its limits. We should be so lucky to
run into more bands like Dianogah. Bands that deliver just what we expect from
them, but still manage to surprise us every time.
Recorded by John McEntire at Soma Electronic Music Studios, Chicago. Additional
recording by Mark Greenberg at Mayfair Recordings. With Andrew Bird (violin on
2, 4, 5, 7), Mark Greenberg (keyboard on 4, 8 and 9; vocals on 8), Stephanie
Morris (vocals on 2, 5, 7) and Billy Smith (guitar on 11; vocals on 8)