Deerhunter returns melodious with Rainwater Cassette Exchange, a dreamy, pop-friendly, 5-song EP.
Whether Deerhunter intended it to be or not, the Rainwater Cassette Exchange EP is quite a nice p.s. to the tripped-out love letter that was last year’s full-length, Microcastles. Recorded in the same studio, with the same producer, the result is a lush, layered, and lovelorn pop appendix. Florid textures abound on these five short songs; warm tones converge with warmer tones, and melodies build onto themselves in a dreamy haze. The title track is anchored by arena-sized drums and builds into a crescendo that threatens to fuzz out any wan expectations, while the sound on “Disappearing Ink” could fill a field in a thunderstorm. The stylistic production along with Deerhunter’s obvious knack for melody is punctuated with vocals that are equal parts throaty rasp and angelic sigh. Count this as another must-have from these Atlanta men.