POP MUSIC
Friday, March 31, 2006; Page C08
Destroyer
Hey, Canada -- can you ease up on the indie-rock exports? You've flooded our markets with a bumper crop of Stars, Islands, Dears, Wolf Parades, Arcade Fires and Broken Social Scenes. Sure, we know all about supply and demand, but your idiosyncratic songsmiths are getting lost in the shuffle.
To be fair, Vancouver's Dan Bejar has tasted plenty of indie success as a contributing member of the critically lauded New Pornographers. But his solo efforts as Destroyer have always found him driving a far more eccentric and interesting (read: less accessible) vehicle.
With his band in tow at the Black Cat on Wednesday, Bejar spoke-sang over soft-rock chords with roughed-up edges. "Take this as a sign that there's life outside your mind," he crooned during the opening number, "Crystal Country." His Dylan-Bowie hybrid rambling came across as a little stylized and made it hard to tell whether he's emulating his heroes or disdaining them. The confusion continued as Bejar wandered through wordy, fragmented narratives that carried a whiff of musical theater.
That doesn't mean the show was theatrical. Culling songs from its past three albums -- "Rubies," "Your Blues" and "This Night" -- the band waltzed through the set with an air of indifference. But like sublime comedy, the performance still felt smart, self-deprecating and purposeful. Nobody whips Pavement-inflected guitars into a Steely Dan-worthy froth by accident. Bejar turned his back to the crowd during moments like this. His audience nodded along tentatively.
-- Chris Richards
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/31/AR2006033100388.html
