Dirty Projectors- Dirty Projectors

By: Bobby Van Leer

For the last decade and a half, Yale grad Dave Longstreth’s project Dirty Projectors has been full of harmonies, staccato hip-hop inspired rhythms, horns and more. Since their last album, Swing Lo Magellan (2012), Longstreth made a large move to Los Angeles by himself and collaborated with Rihanna, Paul McCartney, Kanye West and others on writing “Four Five Seconds.” He was also recruited to Mexico by West to join his The Life of Pablo think tank alongside The Weeknd and French Montana. However, since his breakup with former Dirty Projectors member Amber Coffman in 2013, Longstreth’s life has seemingly been in disharmony. 

On “Keep Your Name,” the first track of Dirty Projectors, Longstreth sings passionately of their breakup and its toll on his mental state. He shows he is not afraid to play with his voice, pitching it down greatly in a nod to DJ Screw (of who, Longstreth is a fan). He uses this effect as well as autotune throughout the album for effect only, as Longstreth’s voice is perfectly suited for his music (see “Up on Hudson”). However, the effects seem to be an attempt to replace what’s most obviously missing on the album, Amber Coffman’s voice. The only appearance Coffman makes is a distorted sample of the chorus for “Impregnable Question” in “Keep Your Name.” Despite her absence vocally, Longstreth incorporated their relationship into almost every song on the album. On “Up on Hudson” he reminds her how he wrote “Stillness is the Move” for Amber to showcase her voice more in the band. This album put both the Dirty Projectors on the map, as well as Amber Coffman, leading her to be featured on tracks such as Major Lazer’s “Get Free.”  

Towards the end of the album comes its biggest standout, “Cool Your Heart.” By far the catchiest and most listenable song on the album, it was written by Longstreth with help from Solange Knowles and features singer Dawn Richard. With tough shoes to fill, Richard does so effortlessly on the chorus. It is a great change of pace for the album which arguably features a little too much of Longstreth and autotune. The end of the chorus feels remarkably like it could be from the Dirty Projectors album Bitte Orca (2009) with its syncopated harmonies, leading beautifully into Longstreth’s second verse. 

Instrumentally, the album is patented Dirty Projectors as it sounds very similar to many of their past albums. Therefore, most listeners will either love or hate their unique and sometimes strange sound. The biggest changes come vocally through the absence of Amber Coffman, and the addition of noted vocal effects including a very heavy dose of autotune which listeners may find annoying. The next step for the Dirty Projectors will be translating this album to a live performance, and we look forward to seeing how they accomplish this. 

Favorite Tracks

Cool Your Heart

Up on Hudson 

Keep Your Name

Least Favorite Tracks

Ascent through the Clouds