Before Today by Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti
LABEL: 4AD

For an artist who never brought his songs into a proper studio, Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti hits the mark with his latest record, out on 4AD. Before Today is strong and wacky, something like taking a safari ride through rock styles. Leader Ariel Pink (born Ariel Marcus Rosenberg) brings his goth to the bedroom after a night of dancing and pogo-ing, so at first listen the album has a disparate sound to it. There are songs that purposefully weld discordant themes together for the sake of a groove as well as ones that stick to a style and drive it all the way. Rosenberg’s past employment as a record store clerk signifies an understanding of lots of good music, but it would be unfair to the quality and genuine fun of Before Today to call it some arch take on the past. Funk, punk, a smattering of electro-soul pulsing over drums somewhere between disco and rock, this record wants to let it all hang out.

“The idea that you can take all your favorite sounds, filter them through yourself and put something good back into the world is the modern artist’s struggle.”

Above all else, the songwriting is what makes Before Today rock. Rosenberg (as Pink) gives his band songs to dig into. In the studio, the bass lines on both “Round And Round” and “Revolution’s A Lie” get all the compression they deserve. “Revolution’s A Lie” lifts and twists Joy Division’s “These Days” without seeming terribly dependent on it. By the same token, the elements of a noise-maker are still apparent. The end of “Menopause Man” reeks of knob-tweaking and tape trashing. Pink doesn’t shy away from a psychedelic pop feel though, and that may be the perfect-excuse kind of tag for his band’s music. The romance of “Bright Lit Blue Skies” is pure pop fun, bringing to mind the spirit, if not the letter, of “Kiss Me”-era Cure. The same goes for “Fright Night” and “Beverly Kills,” where the vocals both bear a striking resemblance to Empire of the Sun/ Sleepy Jackson’s Luke Steele. Haunted Graffiti are also capable of rocking out with a Bowie-meets-Jay Reatard guitar style (“Little Wig”). The superbly titled track “Butt House Blondies” is a mutant fusion of angry Replacements punk and well-crafted songwriter verse.

Sometimes voracious genre-blending is a sign of an artist or band’s inability to create a focused sound. Before Today argues that an opinion like that is beside the point, which is to make good music. The most important lyric is on “Menopause Man”, with Pink singing “You’re trying too hard to be what you already are.” The idea that you can take all your favorite sounds, filter them through yourself and put something good back into the world is the modern artist’s struggle. Hearing an ostensibly rock-oriented band bring in some sax, some popping bass and synths is no crime even with the negative (or worse, ironic) stereotypes those sounds have. Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti are more than shtick, and definitely more than the sum of any one song’s strengths. Listen and believe.


REVIEWED BY JOSEPH VISCONTI
JOSEPH’S FAVE TRACKS: “Little Wig” • “Beverly Kills” • “Menopause Man”





“Round and Round” by Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti (right-click to save)