#balter/saunier

[earinfluxion]

Deerhoof & Dal Niente: Balter/Saunier (New Amsterdam)

I remember sharing Deerhoof's Friend Opportunity in 2006 with Marcos Balter, a friend of mine in Chicago, who immediately fell in love with it; I was also pleasantly surprised by the angular, jaunty tunes of that same album after having explored earlier albums like Reveille, wherein they sounded more like a curious ADHD experiment than an accomplished performance outfit (though in hindsight, perhaps both). Friend Opportunity changed my perception of Deerhoof as far more a force to be reckoned with, tightening and honing their sound while firmly proclaiming their technical prowess. Imagine my delight then, over 10 years later, to hear Marcos’s compositions performed by Deerhoof and contemporary performance ensemble Dal Niente. It’s a collaboration that is curious on so many levels: it bridges the often perceived wide chasm between contemporary ensemble music and experimental rock; it marries the microtonality of Balter's compositions with the often textural and non-melodic sound-making of Deerhoof’s most difficult material; it pairs Balter, a contemporary composer who draws outside the lines, with Greg Saunier, a drummer whose musical ambition and enthusiasm is easily as big as a veteran like Stuart Copeland (and arguably to far more interesting ends musically). Much has been made of rock's crossover successes into more score and composition-oriented ensemble music, Jonny Greenwood’s scores in particular. But there is something more wholly complementary about the creative forces involved with this project.

Balter / Saunier by Dal Niente & Deerhoof

Balter’s “Meltdown Upshot” in seven parts comprises the majority of the recording, and the performances from Deerhoof and Dal Niente bring the music to life such that it’s hard to imagine it any other way. Deerhoof vocalist Satomi Matsuzaki blends seamlessly with vocalists from the 22-piece ensemble, and Saunier’s deft drumming feels like the perfect backbone to Dal Niente’s spry musical maneuvering through Balter’s compositions. The echoing staccato patterns of “No. 4, True/False” feel like a natural fit for the ensemble and Deerhoof’s own sensibilities, sort of a rapid-fire call and response, while “No. 6, Cherubim” is driven far more overtly by Saunier’s drumming and its 5/4 time signature, sounding more plausibly like a Deerhoof session. The push and pull between the various performers and Balter’s writing is what makes the entire recording so successful, as if there was no ego in the equation whatsoever. Instead it feels like a real marriage of sensibilities and enthusiasm for performance, whether across “Meltdown Upshot” or Balter’s other brief microtonal piece in Portuguese, “Pois que nada que dure, ou que durando” (“Since nothing that lasts or that, lasting…”). The final piece on the album turns the tables, featuring Deerhoof pieces interpreted in exciting and often beguiling new ways for twenty minutes. In its sprawl, it is less a series of reinterpretations and more so a new spin on the entirety of Deerhoof's vast œuvre, eschewing any of the band's own playing while Dal Niente bring Saunier's new arrangements to life. It's a compelling take on the band's music, yet again emphasizing that the divide between so-called academic performance and indie rock is not so pronounced after all. The whole thing is immensely satisfying, though Balter’s compositions shine brightest by virtue of the chemistry shared with his collaborators. Highly, highly recommended.

Buy it: Bandcamp

[quartertonality]

Dal Niente & Deerhoof: "Balter/Saunier"

Dal Niente & Deerhoof: “Balter/Saunier”

Balter / Saunier by Dal Niente & Deerhoof

Anyone who has ever listened to Deerhoof knows that everyone in that group is ridiculously talented. I would think most fans also know that Deerhoof founding member and drummer Greg Saunier graduated from the Oberlin Conservatory with a degree in Music Composition in 1991. If, maybe, you didn’t know that, then hopefully it now sheds some light on the…

[cthulhupadthai]

This might be a bit late, but...

Some tunes I got lost in, circa 2016~

D'Angelo & the Vanguard -Black Messiah Radiohead-A Moon Shaped Pool Birds in Row - Personal War Baxter Dury - Happy Soup Sheep , Dog & Wolf - Breath // Not Aquatic Frameworks- Smother Them are Us Too - Part Time Punks // Remain Ta-Ku - Wasted Time (feat. Thandiwe Phoenix) Deafcult- Akira Bon Iver- 22, A Million Royce Wood Junior - Jodie ( ft.Michael Macwoonland ) La Femme - Psycho Tropical Berlin Vendeurs D'Enclumes - T'Es Belle The Slits - Typical Girls Childish Gambino - Boogieman Suuns - 2020 A$AP Rocky - Everyday Amanda Palmer - Ukulele Anthem Super Unison - Auto And So I Watch You From Afar- Ka Ba Ta Bo Da Ka The Growlers- I’ll Be Around Metz- Spit you Out Palace - Holy Smoke Neil Gaiman & Amanda Palmer - An Evening With Neil Gaiman and Amanda Palmer The Suicide File - Now Lie In It Hamilton Leithauser & Rostam - I Had A Dream That You Were Mine Melt Banana - Chain Shot To Have Some Fun Angel Olsen - Unfucktheworld Lantern - Train Song Harriet - I Slept With All Your Mothers TORSO - Sono Pronta a Moririe Mortality Rate - Sleep Deprivation Siouxie and the Banshees - Arabian Nights Phantogram - Cruel World Mr. Gnome- House of Circles Adult Jazz- Gist Is Head Wound City - A New Wave of Violence Death Index - Dream Machine Rights of Spring - Nudes Hashfinger- Melancholy Mood Creepoid - Spirit Birds Autolux- Pussy’s Dead Hozier - Arsonist’s Lullabye // Work Song Amy Winehouse - Wake Up Alone (Lioness: Hidden Treasures) Gantlet Hair - Keep Time Burning Love - Secret Solace St. South - Cadence Kera & The Lesbians - Nailbiter // Witche’s Tit Weekend Nachos - S.C.A.B. Tame Impala- New Person, Same Old Mistakes Button Eyes - This Home of Mine Rainbow Kitten Surprise - Devil Like Me Loma Prieta - Self Portrait Mos Def - Ms. Fat Booty Bastion - Augry Deniro Farrar - Rebirth / Hold On (feat. Child Actor) Travelers - Sleep Talking Alex Wiley - Nothin To Me ( Feat. Jean Deaux & Monster Mike) Elder Island - Today Is Your Day Glass Animals - Pork Soda Punch - Personal Space Feverkin - Sinking (feat. Nori) Pygmy Lush- Send Bombs Andrew Garcia & Andy Lange - kanye and drake Melody Rudi Peni - The E.P.’s of R.P. mus.hiba - Slow Snow Gavin Degraw - Nothing Can Change This Love , Sam Cooke Cover Oathbreaker - Immortals Slow Bloom - Slow Bloom Deerhoof - The Magic // Balter Saunier James Blake - Timeless F.E.A.R.- Camarillo Bonobo- Kerala Pissed Jeans - The Bar is Low A Tribe Called Quest - We The People…. Kim Gordon - Murdered Out

[yikrz]

#NowPlaying Deerhoof Chamber Variations by Greg Saunier, Ensemble Dal Niente

[theevilshoesalesman]

Dal Niente - Deerhoof Chamber Variations