What you say
No-one has reviewed Offend Maggie by Deerhoof yet.
What we say
 This record left our Brian feeling ecstatic.
Deerhoof from me first this week. I've been a long time admirer of this kooked-out lady-led collective. Their fractured spazz core of yore is much more subtle these days. In it's place Offend Maggie's opening number reminds Brett of 'Alright Now' by Free but with a chirupping lady of Oriental extraction trilling all over the place. Their distinctive angular prog sound clatters appealingly, the drums sharp, the time changes sharper still, their bendy pop/rock a welcome shot in the neck as always. Throughout the album quirky sing-song vocal harmonies collide with some spiky alt-pop gems, whilst more melancholic hues caress chunks of brooding math-flecked rock. The thing that strikes me here is that the song writing quality is way back up there after the relatively unfocussed & irritating 'Runners Four' & 'Friend Opportunity'. The guitars are looser, rockier and quirkier whilst the drums are giddy, dead playful, jazzy only in minor flourish ways. It's all in all a great distillation of their sound and it's quite delightful to hear them back on form, keeping it well interesting but spilling with pop nous. Hoofing great stuff, the best collection of theirs since 'Green Cosmos'. CD for now with the LP to come later..
What the label says:
* Deerhoof follow up the hugely acclaimed ‘Friend Opportunity’ album (4/5 in Mojo, Uncut, Q, Guardian,
Independent etc) with their strongest album to date.
* ‘Offend Maggie’ is loose, funky and deliciously rough around the edges. Indeed, if last year’s Friend Opportunity was much of the world’s first restless handshake with Deerhoof, Offend Maggie finds them inviting us into their basement with flashlights and showing us pictures of the ones they love.
* Ultimately Deerhoof is not about notes and rhythms, but about emotion. And while Offend Maggie sparkles with that inimitable something-or-other for which the band’s become known, what this record wears on its sleeve so boldly and poignantly, is its stark humanness: of the characters in the lyrics, of the singer in front of the mic, of the band bashing it out in a room together.
* Fans around the globe who’ve seen how powerfully they play on stage will recognize the Deerhoof they hear on Offend Maggie: all fingers and arms and throats and muscles, physical, at times beautiful, at times brutal. Another way of putting it is that Deerhoof sounds more like "themselves" than they ever have.
* Deluxe gatefold packaging of CD and limited LP, both with poster/lyric sheet.
* Sleeve design by Japanese contemporary artist Tomoo Gokita
* There will be a video released for every track - each video being made by a different friend of the band.
Track Listing: 1. The Tears And Music Of Love 2. Chandelier Searchlight 3. Buck And Judy 4. Snoopy Waves 5. Offend Maggie 6. Basket Ball Get Your Groove Back 7. Don’t Get Born 8. My Purple Past 9. Family Of Others 10. Fresh Born
11. Eaguru Guru 12. This Is God Speaking 13. Numina 14. Jagged Fruit
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