THE DESTROYERS
Argonaut
If you have encountered the Destroyers before, then none of this will come as a surprise. If they are new to you, then buckle up, it could be quite a ride.
As a band, they are the Thunderbirds of the roots world - anything could happen in the next four minutes. It’s not beyond the realms of possibility that the Mormon Tabernacle choir could channel Black Sabbath before a lone trumpeter arrives at the gates of dawn, or another, albeit lazier way of looking at it, it’s like Bellowhead on acid, not so much expect the unexpected as anticipate the unimaginable.
Throughout the album, themes emerge that hint in one direction and then retreat just as quickly into another. It would be vaguely unsettling if it wasn’t so delightfully, deliciously, entertaining.
In a world that seems to be going to not so merry hell in a handcart, this offers to lift our hearts and put a smile on our faces.
The band announces itself with a BANG before progressively introducing us to the various voices to which we will be treated throughout the rest of the album. Fast, occasionally furious and beautifully teetering on what appears on the edge of chaos, what would you give to be inside the head of whoever put all this together. The only sadness is this is happening on a CD player in a moving car, rather in front of us on a festival stage, which is where one can only imagine they are best experienced.
Let us not give the wrong impression, this is not all smoke, flash and noise, there is real beauty within the mix, instruments, voices and moods come and go before it is all over, and the only thing to do is to let it start over again.
You may have gained the impression that this album was rather enjoyed – you would be right. For the musical trainspotters amongst us, you can tick off a list of influences and still have to go back round to spot the ones you inevitably missed. We could give you some pointers, but our advice is to go and find them for yourselves.
If you are looking for an uplift, excitement and an energy boost, the equivalent of a defibrillator to your musical soul – then look no further. As many stars as the rating scale allows.
PS – for those that like to know: They are a 12 piece, lining up with 2 fiddle players, a guitarist, guitar and mandolin, clarinet, whistles, flutes and some esoteric blowing things, bass, accordion, 2 trumpets and some drums – and some of them sing as well!
