My Education
Moody Dipper (Thirty Ghosts)
Essentially a remix disc of songs from last year’s stellar Italian, plus three new songs, Moody Dipper‘s heavy on the electro vibe, which adds a nice layer of grime to the local septet’s typically pristine sound. There’s something lurking here, though the new-age chimes of opener “Spirit of Peace,” their variation on Seventies Krautrockers Popul Vuh, would have you think otherwise. Dalek’s remix of “Green Arrow” bumps the mood into a beat-heavy choke hold real quick. Chicago trio Teith’s take on the same song is vaulted skyward with explosions of mottled noise (thanks to the feathered touch of Pelican axeman Trevor DeBrauw). There’s the Red Sparowes rendering of “Snake in the Grass,” in which bassist Greg Burns molds a borderline horror score; sinister clashes of sound sneak up on Hitchcockian viola. Chris Martin of Kinski takes a similar approach on the sprawling “Puppy Love,” sneaking in his trademark psych bombast. The closing title track provides a return to form, a mellifluous convergence of strings, keys, and ear-shattering guitar. It’s an interesting and pleasantly surprising experiment in sound, because not every band can (or should even attempt to) pull off a remix album. Our suspicions were correct: My Education’s got a dirty side too.
This article appears in June 23 • 2006.