Bitte Orca
by Dirty Projectors

I find it very interesting when people accuse a band of recording purposefully obtuse music, or accuse a person of purposefully listening to obtuse music, in order to promote some image. Just because you don't enjoy an album doesn't mean everyone else isn't going to enjoy it, and it certainly doesn't meant that those who do enjoy it are necessarily just saying so to make themselves seem "hip" (though there are certainly some such people).

I discovered this album on this website, when reading someone else's chart who also had a bunch of albums in common with me. I listened to it without knowing anything about the image it was supposed to have, and I fell in love with it.

From RockyRaccoon TOP 100 COMMENTER 03/24/2014 22:08 | #107414 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

This album feels like it's on the brink of insanity. It just goes and goes and then every now and then, a little insanity shows (this is most prevalent in "Useful Chamber"). The instrumentation here is incredible too, some incredible guitar work. One of the most unique albums I've ever heard. (Edited)

Dirty Projectors has a sound that upon first listen can be fairly hard to listen to. That being said, after repeated listens, one can easily begin to appreciate the genius that is their music. Crazy syncopated rhythms, bizarre vocals, as well as insane guitar parts culminate into one of the year's best avant garde albums. Kudos Dirty Projectors. (Edited)

This album is like a Talking Heads. What seems willfully weird at first is in fact infectious rhythmic and melodic complexity. Also love the use of the textures of voices on this album.

It's very hard to describe this album or even merely to categorize it. Simply labeling it "indie rock" is doing this album and Dirty Projectors a massive disservice. The album opens with a reverbed guitar sounding as though it were straight from 69', but as the opener progresses the female back-up vocals are introduced and it is these back-up vocals which i believe give the album it's spirit and "soul". The songs can go from frivolous guitar picking experimenatation to soulful melodic music just with harmonizing collective vocals of Amber Coffman and Haley Dekle. The group as a whole is obviously incredibly dynamic and the erratic and unpredictable music on this record is a testament to that. There are no musical boundaries in Bitte Orca yet unlike many other Experimental Records you actually feel like you can have fun with these songs and dance around to them. The standout track for me would either be the opener "Cannibal Resource" or the semi-seductive "Stillness is the move"- which is the closest the album ever gets to having anything sound faintly like pop. In short, there's plenty of awkward picking, plenty of harmonized female vocals and plenty of utterly brilliant instrumentation. This album is very cool and sometimes quite fun without sounding like the band is trying too hard.