William Carlos Whitten - Dédoublement

 Released: June 17

Compared to his previous album Telepaths, this latest offering is something a bit slower and more sultry, which is helped by Diana Crash providing additional vocals again here. While the former had a louder, more chaotic, and more energetic attitude throughout, Dédoublment is more relaxed and moody album which takes equal inspiration from the past and present with modern indie rock vibes and a 60s & 70s approach to structure. It opens up with the sulky “If You Want to Find God, Read Books and Go to the Movies,” making references to classic film and literature with a message of connecting with others to feel a greater connection to the world at large among some fuzzy guitar licks. This sets the tone for the rest of the album, keeping the energy lower and a contemplative mood in the air. 

There’s few moments where the energy picks up, notably on the title track with its slightly more upbeat rhtyhm pounding out a steady beat as the Crash and Whitten continue to sing and speak their disconsolate aphorisms and thoughts. “A Beautiful, Half-Trained Panther” gives a bit of misdirection as it begins with a similarly upbeat start but quickly comes to a halt with a poetic little break before quickly winding back up to another burst of energy. It’s a positively weird dynamic but it feels fitting and natural for the material. These two kind of stand out among the slower tracks with the dyanmic of stop and go recurring in a few others like the almost mournful “Anyone But You.” The album ends with beautiful and apocalyptic “Nuke the Servers,” an unhinged but also completely plausible vision of the future that makes for an insane and brilliant way to end an album.