Swing Lo Magellan

every minute, every song, every single note. this is an incredible album. second to Gossamer this is the album of the year.

Some of the music itself may be intriguing, but man does david longstreth's voice annoy my ears off.

Insanely great record. It's the recording in a band's (no matter how good or consistent) career that has the magic. Joanna Newsome's first record, Efterklang's Magic Chairs, Orange Juice's You Can't Hide..., Sinatra's Only the Lonely, on and on. There's nothing to get past on this. It's so good and solid.

I found this quite a bit better than Bitte Orca...on heavy rotation at the moment.

Awesome. Am an instant fan.

A perfect synthesis of beats and classic rock, built on the foundation of nearly ten years of musical and sonic exploration. The stirring melodies and unique arrangements serve the direct, emotional content well. "About to Die," about the joy inherent in the riddle of life and the certainty of death is built on a uplifting vocal melody in the chorus and playful bassline in the verses; "Just From Chevron," one of the most moving political and environmental protest songs I've heard, is built on a beat that evokes an incomplete militaristic rhythm, complete with gorgeous vocals from Amber Coffman and Haley Dekle serving as a sort of Greek chorus. "Dance For You" and "Gun Has No Trigger" have been promoted as singles, and they're fantastic. So's "Unto Caesar" and the remarkable closer, "Irresponsible Tune." If you haven't been drawn in by Dirty Projectors' music before, give them another shot with this album. If you liked their previous efforts, this album may kill you with pleasure.

Dave, Just do the song writing and maybe background vox. Leave it to the angels that can actually sing to take the fore front. If I didn't have to listen to his (Dave's) vocals, this release it would be a much better album. Thank god I didn't pay for this...

2012 has been very weak so far for music. Only about a half dozen albums I've listened to have really stood out. This album however, rises to the top very quickly. It is unlike Bitte Orca in all aspects. A more relevant comparison would actually be Velvet Underground or the alt-country stylings of Wilco. Rather than looking to the future, as Bitte Orca did, this album pays gratitude to the past. The melodies consist of simple hooks and the textures are very raw. They do this without sacrificing any of their idiosyncrasies or sounds that make them distinctly Dirty Projectors. What I find truly remarkable about this album is its appeal to the human condition. It is very obvious that Dave Longsteth really worked hard to be straightforward in his lyricism rather than his usual cryptic songwriting. While the instrumentation is much more acoustic and the production is less hi-fi, it is the heartfelt songwriting and story telling that make this album feel vintage. Swing Lo Magellan is folksy, down-to-earth, and really worth a listen.

Everything about this album works. Fantastic.

This is their John Wesley Harding. Pretty nifty