LCD Soundsystem
Sound Of Silver
DFA / Capitol
By Rusty Roberts
For their last release, LCD Soundsystem was commissioned by Nike to record the single “45’33,” a track that was designed for people to add to their iPods at the local gym. Obviously, LCD leader James Murphy didn’t forget longevity with their second album, Sound of Silver. Over the course of the nine songs, several of them range anywhere from six to eight minutes. They could be best described as meditations testing one’s patience, showing that LCD works better when time is not of the essence.
The first thing one should picture when putting on Silver is that of a mirrorball spinning around above them – on a farm. If that’s hard to picture, than consider where the band laid down the tracks on the album, which was a farm in upstate New York. The opening hypnosis that is “Get Innocuous” bears amazing resemblance to something Brian Eno recorded in the 1970s. Murphy’s vocals are distorted and slowed down, while keyboards and guitars trigger off in the harmless air for over seven minutes. But fear not, fans of the first album will get their much needed dose of cowbell on such songs as the romp “Us V Them,” and “Time To Get Away.”
Beyond their attempts to charter into known territory, LCD’s Silver shines with two ballads. The closer, “New York I Love You, But You’re Bringing Me Down” is just that. The song finds Murphy crooning about his home base, denouncing the city that gave him fame, overtop a nice piano, that’s not that far off from a soul ballad. Once all the instruments are up front, it appears there might be a hint of strings hiding beneath a piercing guitar solo.
The moment that tops this can be found in “Someone Great.” Using sections of “45’33” as its soundtrack, Murphy tells a story of getting older and dealing with those adult scenarios as they keep piling on. When he sings about all the work needing to be done and all the time, planning and songs that need completing, and how it all piles on until the day it stops, you wonder if he’s fed up with his life. Does he yearn for the simpler life, maybe living on the same farm where he mined Silver? As long as Murphy stays this introspective and keeps the songs long, he’ll at least have me under his spell.
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