To the more avid fans of Dave Longstreth and his band Dirty Projectors, Morning Better Last! is more than just another awesome from the lo-fi New Haven days, more than a segue between The Glad Fact and Slaves Graves and Ballads. Morning Better Last! (put out by States Rights Records) was a compilation album, a "best of" gathered from 3 tapes that were made and distributed to friends in the 2001-2002 period. The names of the 3 tapes are:
- "Nile Yessum" / "Picknum Deduns" / "Pickenham Dedonshire"
- "Brother Had A Birthday" / "Live At Sam's" / "The Glad Fact Testimonial"
- "Three Brown Finches" / "Obscure Wisdom EP" / "Seven Songs That Owe A Lot To Zep III".
A few years back I tracked down 1/9th of this collection, "Pickenham Dedonshire" which is in itself a pretty odd little collection. I imagine if the names of these tapes are correct, we are to treat the tapes like triple EP collections, in triplicate.
So Pickenham Dedonsire is a little sparse but has plenty of treats. The first part of the EP focuses on "How Does My Mind Work" which is a lovely little song from Morning Better Last. Track 2 the "end of the world remix" is clearly the stand out with swirling and lush arrangements.
"Mexican Standoff II" is another stand out track brimming with mood and environment. That is one of the elements of Dave's early work that is so infinitely enjoyable, the moods and environments created through varying fidelities.
"The Love Prayer Book" and a remix of "The Softer Shell" groove us toward the end of this little piece of cassette. I would love one day to have a collection of all 9 EP's across 3 tapes.
Infact, this post has made the thirst for searching rear its ugly head once again!
DOWNLOAD PICKENHAM DEDONSHIRE VIA DROPBOX HERE
years later I know but I just wanted to say thanks for leaving this up, always loved the dirty projectors but haven't heard a lot of these!
ReplyDeleteWould absolutely love to hear some of the other tapes and will be sure to post them online if I ever get my hands on them.