Dan Deacon - Gliss Riffer

A three-year delay between albums may seem average for most contemporary artists. For Dan Deacon, it’s a lifetime. The Baltimore-based electro whizzkid was one of the most prolific musicians on the planet in his early days, releasing no fewer than seven fully fledged albums and a host of EPs and singles between 2003 and 2007.
His output has slowed to more normal levels in recent years, but the quality has certainly upped, from breakthrough release, Spiderman Of The Rings, through to 2012’s widescreen America. For Gliss Riffer, however, Deacon has eschewed the ensemble-based collaboration of that album and returned to the solitary nature of his early work. That’s not to say that Gliss Riffer is introspective: far from it.
It kicks off with the stately sashay of ‘Feel The Lightning’, all shimmering synths, squelchy effects and buzzing beats that’s as far from bedroom electronica as you can get. What’s perhaps most surprising is that both the male and ‘female’ vocal are actually Deacon himself. Think The Flaming Lips jamming with Caribou and you’re part-way towards getting how insanely catchy this is.
The beautiful ‘When I Was Done Dying’ is a dreamlike confessional that starts slowly and builds in intensity as it progresses, Deacon’s vocal getting more hysterical as he describes a Milton-esque descent into the afterlife that’s like a less helium-fuelled take on Battles’ monumental ‘Atlas’. The otherworldy ‘Meme Generator’ is another highlight, all hauntingly atmospheric swooping keyboards and staccato beats.
Much of the rest of the album sees Deacon welding spacey, hypnotic melodies onto frantic rhythms and pumping percussion. The frenetic ‘Sheathed Wings’ seems in an awful hurry to get its finale; ‘Man On Fire’ bolts some shiny synths onto house-inflected beats and pieces and ‘Learning To Relax’ builds up quite a head of steam over the course of its almost seven minutes. Indeed, only the closing ‘Steely Blues’ lets the side down, seven and a half minutes of inconsequential filler that blends too easily into the background. For the most part, however, Deacon is right on the money.

Key Track - 'Feel the Lightning'