THE DEER TRACKS play the Silver Dollar tonight (Thursday, February 28). See listings. Rating: NNNN
The final instalment of the Swedish pop duo’s Archer Trilogy finds them bringing together the best elements of the previous two in what is their most confident-sounding work yet. Lead singer Elin Lindfors has an ethereal voice that falls somewhere between Björk and Portishead’s Beth Gibbons, but the Deer Tracks trade the experimental tendencies of the former and the smoky grooves of the latter band for big, anthemic choruses and swelling synth strings.
Those dramatic climaxes are balanced by a delicate touch with the production. IDM-inspired clicks and glitches give the electronic rhythms an intimate and gentle feel, and the layered arrangements never get too dense. There are moments when the sweeping melodies verge on the grandiose, but they successfully walk that difficult line between obnoxiously extroverted and too restrained.
Top track: W
