Destroyer - Labyrinthitis LP (MARKDOWN)

Received an 8.5 Best New Music tag from Pitchfork. Labyrinthitis brims with mystic and intoxicating terrain, the threads of Dan BejarÕs notes woven through by allusions at once eerily familiar and intimately perplexing. The record circuitously draws ever inward, each turn offering giddy surprise, anxious esoterica, and thumping emotionality at equal odds. More than an arcane puzzle for the listener, Labyrinthitis warps and winds through unfamiliar territory for Bejar as well. Written largely in 2020 and recorded the following spring, the album most often finds Bejar and frequent collaborator John Collins seeking the mythic artifacts buried somewhere under the dance floor, from the glitzy spiral of ÒIt Takes a ThiefÓ to the Books-ian collage bliss of the title track. Initial song ideas ventured forth from disco, Art of Noise, and New Order, Bejar and Collins championing the over-the-top madcappery. ÒJohn is in his 50s, and IÕm almost there, but we used to go to clubs,Ó Bejar laughs. ÒOur version may have been punk clubs, but our touchstones for the album were more true to disco.Ó