Weekly Release Spotlight: Ducktails

Posted on 1/25/2011

Like every band on the Woodsist collective, there is a certain fuzzy haze that has come to distinguish the West-coast based label. Moon Duo, The Fresh & Onlys, Woods, and Real Estate have all mastered this genre of music extremely well. It comes as no surprise then that Ducktails, otherwise known as Real Estate’s guitarist Matthew Mondanile, has fit the niche impeccably. Unlike older material though, his new album teeters more closely to the sunny outlook vibe than perhaps Moon Duo’s 7-minute repetitive anthems purposely veer away from, and this change in direction is what makes Ducktails III: Arcade Dynamics a unique listen for the dead of winter we Minnesotans find ourselves in.

The Real Estate comparisons are a plenty here, but Mondanile makes sure his melodies are more difficult to decipher, and including Panda Bear’s Noah Lennox on a vinyl-only B-side version of “Killin the Vibe” seems to be a particular homage to that desire. “Hamilton Road” is one of the few songs on the album that emits the most simplicity, a throwback to 60s Donovan in some respects, but that comparison doesn’t last long. Tracks like “Art Vandelay” showcase an apparent riff at first but then are deconstructed immediately into something totally different, something which Mondanile seems pretty confident in producing.

In an interview with Tiny Mix Tapes back when he released Ducktails II, he was fully cognizant of the imagery and moods his music would create. In an attempt to explain his passion for feel-good music, he still notes the downfall: “…it's not really real; it's synthetic or fake -- a fake recreation or something.” Even if the tunes on Ducktails III are inevitably artificial, Mondanile should be confident that he is producing some timeless songs that make each of us feel like we are missing something inside. That doesn’t sound particularly hopeful, but sometimes you need music like that.

Written by Jon Schober, Radio K Program Director