as we're about to put another year behind us, i'm almost certain this JUNIP song is my favourite of 2010. Pitchfork's Ian Cohen sums it up well: "Got a rope and summit," González sings repeatedly at the outset, and while it's an economically evocative lyric, it's a bit of misdirection as to how Junip works. Theirs is a sound that doesn't move upward so much as downhill, accumulating its mass with sheer momentum. What's interesting is how little González needs to be pushed. A solo version of "Rope and Summit" might have been the most propulsive thing on any of his prior albums, but Elias Araya's drumwork gives it a vital pulse, while Tobias Winterkorn's drafty synths put meat on the bones. The rhythm section plays with a steady hand throughout Rope, favoring simplicity and shade while retaining the uncluttered sonic arranging that so often serves as a trademark of González's...
back to the here & now ⎯ toughen up or die:
