GREG SAUNIER - WE SANG, THEREFORE WE ARE

Released: 28/06/2024

It’s a ballsy thing – hubristic, even – to reframe Descartes’ Cogito, as Greg Saunier does with the title of his debut LP, but if the Deerhoof drummer continues to make solo albums as good as We Sang, Therefore We Are, he can bastardise the whole of Discourse on Method for all I care.

The first question you might have about We Sang is, ‘Does it sound like his group?’ Well, yes and no – while brilliant melodies and complex harmonies collide, and keys change frequently and unexpectedly, as is the Deerhoof way, the record mixes this formula with aspects of Saunier’s favourite guitar bands, creating a sound distinct enough to sound dazzlingly fresh. And so on opener ‘There Were Rebels’ we hear elements of The Kinks, and the great Canadian post-punk band Women’s trademark valve-y, wobbly tape-worn guitar stabs; aspects of ‘Yeah You, Person’ sound like The Who’s ‘Baba O’Riley’ played at double speed; ‘Furrowed Sugarloaf’ evokes a lo-fi Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (OK, it sounds a lot like Woods …); and ‘Rip the Atmosphere from the Wind’ brings to mind Bossa Nova-era Pixies and a chorus that conjures Tame Impala covering a Syd Barrett song you’ve never heard. There are many more ‘Hey, that sounds like (insert band name)’ moments, but this is not to suggest at all that We Sang trades in pastiche – the elements are too fleeting and the overall songs too gloriously weird and bursting with Saunier’s irrepressible, idiosyncratic style for that. In fact, so much do I love this fantastic record that it will 100% be on my Top 10 albums of the year list.