DEERHOOF “The Magic” LP

After all the accolades from press and peers, what’s a legendary band left to do? Rent out an abandoned office space in the middle of the desert in New Mexico in lieu of a regular recording studio, go in with little or no preconceived notions of what would happen, set up, plug in and get loud! After seven days Deerhoof had found (you guessed it) The Magic, a raw and refreshing wallop of an album about leaving your comfort zone and finding a pineapple.

With The Magic, Deerhoof dreamed up an alchemy of ’77 punk, pop, glam, hair metal, doo-wop, hip hop, and R&B, late-night car rides, long days, spandex, shadows, and attitude. Poetry into noise, volume knobs into pleasure, friendship into rock band.

“Maybe it came from the music we liked when we were kids, when music was like magic—before we knew about the industry and before there were rules—sometimes hair metal is the right choice. We all showed up in the mood to sing. says drummer Greg Saunier.

For singer and bassist Satomi Matsuzaki, the making The Magic was the latest episode of an ongoing gamble. “I joined this band a week after I arrived in San Francisco from Japan. I hopped on a MUNI bus to have a first meeting with Deerhoof. I got off at a wrong stop. I was lost and confused. They found me on a dark street corner after I called for help from a pay phone. Since then my adventure expanded. Deerhoof is a vehicle with four powered wheels that takes me through forest, desert and buildings. My life is adventure!

The Magic is a mixtape imbued with Deerhoof’s sorcery—boldness, wonder, technical know-how, risk. It is a mixtape by the kid with the biggest music collection you’ve ever seen, who will take you camping and show you how to pull a rabbit out of a hat.