Four years after dropping off Spiral, living cult legends DARKSIDE reconvene with an entirely new structure for Nothing, resulting in an eclectic make-up that causes tossing over the idea of genre to seem futile. Dave Harrington’s extracurricular efforts (or earnestly, curricular, given DARKSIDE’s perma-side-project status) find him with the members of Vampire Weekend. As mentioned earlier, Jaar has his own legend in the ambient and electronic genres. Tlacel Ezparza is an equipment company founder on the top line of his CV, pioneering a half-drum kit / half-sample machine. His experience informs Nothing and uniquely aligns with the band’s overall vision.
Nicolas Jaar’s Restless Vocals Power Darkside On Nothing
While vocal flips do most of the talking in his other work, Jaar steps in front of the microphone and is the lifeblood as a result, even if the bulk of his performances come through heavy distortions and filters. Despite their warped texture, the thoughts are vulnerable and unfiltered. Jump to the end stretch of the record in the paired “Hell Suites” for the most harrowing: “Look out the window, it’s hell out there” or “We’re living in Hell — nothing less.” Further mystifying these reflections is how playful the producer delivers them, copping a true falsetto on the latter. “S.N.C” calls to mind the most infectious of the Against All Logic catalog, with a chipper string sample in the middle of the song a la “This Old House” and blissful distortion very much of a piece with “Rave On U.”
Don’t mistake that for Jaar being the only significant piece. Harrington’s guitar work on “Graucha Marx” allows them to dip into the 80s aesthetic of bands like “The Cure,” simultaneously executing the record’s foundation with a strumming throughline and its biggest payoff with electric guitar flourishes. The experimentation the latter two delve into is only possible with the dependable percussion that Ezparza brings to the project. This aspect may make this their most accessible project yet despite its extremely heady details. “Heavy Is Good For This” is a perfect example, transformed from an incredibly isolated and disparate headspace into something, dare we say, dancey as drum and bass influences come to light towards the midpoint.
The LP’s Free-Flowing Atmosphere Leads To Its Biggest Highlights
Ironically, “American References” works traditional influence from cumbia music, with live hand percussion and Spanish-language lyrics: “If it’s not working, don’t tell me it’s not working.” Though a methodical, languid atmosphere is constant throughout the record, this is a high point there, waltzing through repeated hooks before an analog bass comes in and jolts the track alive with a palpable groove.
For all the vivid color that DARKSIDE expresses through Nothing, it’s only on-brand that the record closes with a full-blown meditation, “Sin El Sol No Hay Nada.” Structurally, throwback synthesizers again plod to the song’s midpoint until Jaar calls out like a ghost from behind muted maracas, culminating with a cacophony of distorted digital effects that’d made Chris Nolan blush.
Though plenty rewarding on its own merits, the backstory for this album feels integral in understanding it. As Jaar stated in interviews in the lead-up, recording sessions for the newly-founded trio came with a direct focus: “not trying to make anything happen. In fact, you’re letting nothing happen at all.” Looking at it in sum, the climaxes and resolutions on Nothing are incredibly intricate and well-developed, but in the course of listening, it feels almost as if they arrive at each moment as if by accident. Quibble with what bucket you’ll place it in if you wish, but we’re lucky that this crop of musicians with such rich and disparate backgrounds reconvene with any consistency for the rich experiment of DARKSIDE.
Catch Nothing and all of the Darkside catalog wherever you stream your music.
Elsewhere in our coverage, dive into our review of Anna Shoemaker – Someone Should Stop Her.
