Autolux - Pussy's Dead

2016 release, the Los Angeles-based trio's third album. Pussy's Dead is an immersive sonic experience. The foundation of nearly every song consists of tangled sonic collages built around uneasy, often beautiful arrangements that approach meaning from seemingly impossible vantage points, but still register squarely with the listener s emotions. There is an "electronicness" within the organic wash of these songs, but it comes from digitally deconstructing what's been played by humans, rather than precisely programming synthetic sounds and instructing a computer to play them. To enhance this feeling, Autolux also made a deliberate choice to de-emphasize electric-guitar-driven music. They deconstructed and distorted what electric guitars they did use. This was a marked change from their previous two albums: 2004's stormy, post-punk-inspired Future Perfect and 2010's eerie, synthesizer-and-sample-heavy Transit Transit. The result is a collection whose songs not only stand on their own as individual works of art, but also draw considerable power when listened to in context with each other. Pussy's Dead is particularly transformative: It's intelligent construction and experimental approach make for an album that's not tied down to any era, genre or approach. Additionally, the albums artwork comes courtesy of the Australian contemporary artist Anthony Lister, whose work is a striking combination of technical prowess, spontaneous technique and tradition-flouting.