Another Way Of Saying Goodbye

Destroyer “It Takes A Thief”

Labyrinthitis mostly provides the sort of things we’ve come to expect to hear on Destroyer records: New Order-ish synthpop rendered entirely in overcast tones, some atmospheric guitar songs that feels like a fantasy of a romantic experience, and lots of Dan Bejar doing his wry Dan Bejar thing. (I am particularly fond of how he delivers the line “Now, what do you call it when every part of said bird is used?” with total gleeful depravity.) “It Takes A Thief” is the surprising outlier, a bright and groovy number that somehow gracefully contrasts sophistipop touches with slapstick sound effects over a chunky bass line. It’s a song that probably would’ve fit in well on a New Pornographers record in tonal terms, though I think bringing more harmony to this may defeat some of its charm. I like the way Bejar sounds silly and playful here, like he’s the bewildered star of a comedy about a band that takes itself very seriously.

Buy it from Bandcamp.