Dodos: No Color Review

Indie Music Reviews
Artist: Dodos
Album: No Color
Label: Frenchkiss

Dodos may have outdone themselves this time – and that’s not a bad thing at all. No Color, the fourth full-length from the San Francisco based duo, finds the band covering familiar ground all the while exploring new territory. The loss of a member from 2009’s release, Time to Die, has put the band back at square one musically, but guitarist/vocalist Meric Long and percussionist Logan Krueber thrive together with the extra space gained on No Color.

The opening track on the record, “Black Night,” places Dodos right back into their creative comfort zone, combining poly rhythms and melodies to form a sonic landscape a five-piece band would have a tough time pulling off. It’s clear that the studio was their friend, with multiple guitars and percussive sounds bleeding from the speakers at all angles. Though Long mostly plays acoustic guitars, the arrangements become quite heavy at times, with distorted guitars usually making themselves well known at some point in most tracks. Songs flow seamlessly from one rhythm to the next, and change meters flawlessly multiple times on each song. The overall feel of the record could be summed up in one track, “Going Under.” The 6 minute semi-epic showcases the bands ability to synchronize at ease from one meter to another. “Hunting Season” is the other true gem in second half of the record, opening with a vibraphone the band has been accustomed to using over the course of their career before breaking into a catchy hook with a driving bass guitar to accentuate a shining moment on the record.

It would be easy for the casual listener to get lost in the sometimes chaotic manner of these abrupt changes; however, Long’s soothing tenor vocal arrangements help tie the syncopated instrumentation in to the perfect bow. Lending a helping hand on background vocals on “Don’t Try and Hide It” and “When Will You Go” is accomplished solo artist and New Pornographer Neko Case. Though one might expect such a mighty cameo to be accompanied by an equally strong performance, Case’s pitch- perfect sultry voice blends into the background while Long maintains the lead responsibilities. Lyrically, the record maintains the feelings of one who has been abandoned from start to finish. However, Long does a masterful job hiding the context of his words most of the time, only saying how he really feels when the need to drive home a point is present.

Overall, Dodos have done an extraordinary job staying true to their unique folk pop sound of their roots while taking it a step further into a borderline math-rock feel at many times throughout No Color. Don’t be surprised if, by the end of 2011, this release catapults Dodos into the “Album of the Year” conversation and makes plenty of Top 10 lists amongst leading indie circles. Unlike the species from which the band gained its moniker, expect these guys to make plenty of noise in the time to come.

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