Artist: Atlas Sound
Album: Logos
Label: Kranky (US) 4AD (Europe)
Release Date: October 20

Deerhunter frontman Bradford Cox is slowy turning into the kind of rare musical genius wunderkind that are unfortunately so few and far between. Through a slew of Bedroom Demo’s, discharged EP’s and self-indulgent full-lengths, Cox has cemented himself as not only a notable songwriter, but one that’s output is nearly as prolific as it’s contents. Logos, the fourth full-length released under the Atlas Sound moniker, is the summation of all of Cox’s previous work climaxed into a documented and focused collection.

“The Light that Failed” opens the album with a repeated acoustic guitar riff, backed by dissonant hisses and moans, capitalizing on Cox’s penchant for eerie minimalist layering which is followed by “An Orchid” a track that is just as similar to anything in the Atlas Sound back catalog. With that, Cox delves into a pool of psychedelic pop and ambient trickery. Logos’ lead single “Walkabout” lights the album on fire with it’s cameo by Animal Collective’s Panda Bear. The two frontmen switch off on the track’s vocal-duties which is backed by luminous and almost tropical instrumentation, making itself one of Logos’ brightest moments.

Elsewhere, Cox mixes simplistic bedroom acoustics with his ruminating vocal delivery on “Attic Lights” and delves into long-winded yet concisely focused shoegaze on “Quick Canal”. All of the previously aforementioned material is merely the the bread sandwiching the meat of the album. “Washington School” creates a bouncing wall of poppish euphoria to the tune of Cox’s reverbed vocals, while the album standout “Shelia” showcases Cox at his songwriting peak, boasting one of the catchiest three and a half minutes you’ll hear this year.

It seems that with Logo’s, Bradford Cox has finally left the confines of his bedroom to give his work the cliche’d “breath of fresh air”. The sound heard throughout Logos is both consistent and addicting, compounding soaring soundscapes with conservative whispers making Logos not only one of the shining moments of 2009, but arguably Cox’s best work to date.

DOWNLOAD:: Atlas Sound – Washington School
DOWNLOAD:: Atlas Sound – Shelia
Atlas Sound at Myspace