For someone who writes for an on-line magazine/blog about music, you’d think I would have an encyclopaedic knowledge of all things musical. In fact, as with most walks of life, I employ the philosophy of striving to be the one-eyed man in the Kingdom Of The Blind. It is with this philosophy I approach reviewing Noble and Godlike in Ruin, by Deerhoof. I’ve heard of them but not heard them. In one way this perhaps means that I have no preconceptions about them; no established opinions. So, this should be a reasonably objective album review! Allow me to be your one-eyed man. What follows is what I see!
If you know Deerhoof, then you may want to skip this next bit, where I ask the question:
Who is (are) Deerhoof and where do they come from?
Who are (is) Deerhoof and where do they come from?
Deerhoof started in San Francisco in 1994. They were initially a bass and harmonica combo but soon added drums. Of course they were. Of course they did. You don’t get many bands like that, so if you like progressive music then I think we’re off to a good start. For a band established for over thirty years, there have been surprisingly few members, there being only four current and three alumni. Although their founder, Rob Fisk, was no longer with the band by the beginning of this millennium, nearly everyone in the band have been members for a mighty long time. I suppose they could be described as a guitar-based band, though they do change roles and did have a dedicated keyboardist for two years in the late nineties.
By the early 2000s, and their sixth album, Apple O’, they were railing against the Iraq War and exploring interesting themes, such as the holocaust. I can only assume this didn’t come out of the blue and I need to listen to their earlier albums to confirm this, but I assume Deerhoof had already established this thematic pattern by then. No doubt anyone who normally listens to Kid Rock and can understand any of it, would accuse them of being woke, though I dare say that Deerhoof, and any of you lovely readers, would see that as a massive compliment! I’m really looking forward to hearing more, because any band deserves attention when they reference Apollo (the Greek god, not the famous renamed Hammersmith Odeon) and have had one of their albums adapted to a children’s ballet!
So, here we are in 2025 and here I am writing about their 20th album!
It took me less than a minute of listening to the first track to decide that I needed to hear more.
Ivy, my four-year old granddaughter just came into my office, did my make-up, which included non-existent blusher and brushing my eyebrows the wrong way, and commented on the music playing in the background – which was this very Deerhoof album – saying she liked it. Given that she lay on her back doing enthusiastic bicycle crunches to As Cold As Can Be In An English Sea by Cardiacs, when she was no more than six months old, this is high praise indeed, I’ve just decided.
I think, in part, the ease with which a four-year old is taken by the music of Deerhoof is perhaps because of the innocence conveyed in the tones and timbre of Satomi Matsuzaki’s voice, being the complete antithesis of the vocal styles typical of the music Ivy would normally hear on my sound systems. This is, however, no reflection on the level of sophistication to be found on this album. The overall feeling I get from the album is the result of experimental combinations of sounds, rather than desiring to plop out songs following the good old tried and tested formula of drums, guitar, bass and vocals – not that this isn’t sometimes evident, such as track 6, Ha, Ha Ha Ha, Haaa, which is recognisably a performance by a band.
Lyrically, you must work to derive meaning from the words. Nevertheless, track 9, Under Rats, uses words somewhat slightly less cryptic, though just as enigmatic. It also features the renowned rapper and Nine Inch Nails/Trent Reznor collaborator, Saul Williams (he with the List Of Demands – a track I urge you to find if you’re unfamiliar with it).
Here’s a sample of the lyrics to Under Rats:
But I know what every human know:
Being & becoming
Fear & loving
Eat, sleep, think, & grow
Lonesome in the arctic,
A cathartic shift to vegetable
Human-being, animal
Murderous compatible”
…and here’s what I suggest you should do:
1. Make yourself a nice drink, perhaps a coffee
2. Click the Bandcamp link at the end of this thing.
3. Find a comfortable chair in a position where you have access to the internet
(See 2. Click that link below).
4. Sit back with your internet-enabled device, and read my largely meandering, stream of consciousness codswallop of a review featuring a smattering of semi-relevant name-dropping.
5. Buy the album on a physical medium of your choice – but not if that choice is cassette – as the album in cassette format is, rather weirdly, sold out! (They only made 12. Probably. Ed)
In conclusion, I love it when I get to hear music from a band and realise that there’s a huge back catalogue to explore. It’s like hearing a band’s debut album on release and then waiting excitedly, expectantly for the next, except this time you don’t need to wait!
Is it prog? Good grief no, thank goodness! Is it progressive? I think it is! So, if like me, you listen to Noble and Godlike in Ruin, and this is your first Deerhoof experience, then I hope you can also revel in this wonderful album and go on to enjoy their previous nineteen albums!
TRACK LISTING
01. Overrated Species Anyhow (2:13)
02. Sparrow Sparrow (2:26)
03. Kingtoe (2:22)
04. Return of the Return of the Fire Trick Star (2:35)
05. A Body of Mirrors (2:26)
06. Ha, Ha Ha Ha, Haaa (3:42)
07. Disobedience (5:01)
08. Who Do You Root For? (1:55)
09. Under Rats (3:48)
10. Immigrant Songs (7:00)
Total Time – 33:28
MUSICIANS
Satomi Matsuzaki – Vocals, Bass
Ed Rodriguez – Guitar
John Dieterich – Guitar
Greg Saunier – Drums, Vocals
~ With:
Saul Williams – Rapper (9)
ADDITIONAL INFO
Record Label: Independent
Country of Origin: USA
Date of Release: 25th April 2025
LINKS
Deerhoof – Website | Facebook | Bandcamp | YouTube | X | Instagram
