No matter your feelings about Dirty Projectors, it’s hard to deny they wield some seriously original chops. For most of the world, these were first introduced with 2010’s drooled-over Bitte Orca, but Swing Lo Magellan will no doubt find the New York genre blenders climbing atop the throne as America’s new weird-rock kings. Like its predecessor, Swing Lo proves that Dirty Projectors’ genius rests in making the familiar unfamiliar. Throughout, the Dave Longstreth-led project takes decades-old structures, whether they be from rock, folk, hip-hop or neo-classical, and mutates them into something entirely Projectors, bringing a sense of musical adventure and, at the same time, the tried and true. The album stands out by being head-scratchingly complicated and intricate while retaining a relaxed, rough-around-the-edges feel. Standouts like the ghostly and threadbare “Gun Has No Trigger” and the horn-packed “Unto Caesar” embrace both perfection and imperfection. Add it all up, plus rumours that 60-plus songs didn’t make the final cut, and Dirty Projectors have delivered a best-of-2012 shoe-in that makes most of their indie contemporaries look downright lazy.
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