V.The Snake Eats Itself
Or, the point. Why bother talking about these albums at the same time? They’re opposite in tone, style, almost every possible way. Well, almost. The one bind they have is undeniable, like the title. Both albums are ciphers to understanding the world at the world for the forseeable future.
This year has been stunningly good for music. It’s not like these albums came out and have opened the world up in a year where nothing else is going on. My personal perspective- that these two albums are the most important albums to be in rotation now- is threatened by a wealth of staggering quality. Not but a few months ago, I wrote a loveletter to “Leave Home” by The Men which was, until the riots and until the gravity of Death Grips sank in, my album of the year. But it was because of that shifting in the world, and because of the quality of music available, that I felt that it was necessary to write this huge fucking thing.
The two records are indispensable tools in this changing time, and they offer an amazing benefit of two thorough perspectives on modern humanity. PJ Harvey looks down from the tower, and sees the weather of the world coming, as well as the untamed landscape that surrounds humanity. Death Grips stands inside this landscape, and strips piece after piece away from the artifice they thought the world was, exposing the creatures that threaten their person.
Fermata over Whole Rest 