Dept. of Disappearance is the second solo studio album by American indie rock musician Jason Lytle. It was released on October 16, 2012 by record label ANTI-. Regarding the album, Lytle noted, "If there were any deliberate attempts on this record, it was trying to get back to more of a fairy-tale-ish-fantasy thing that was once again rooted in reality, with drums, pianos and real instruments."[2]
Writing and composition
Regarding the album's lyrical and thematic content, Jason Lytle noted, "I think if anything, some of the elements that used to drive a lot of my favourite Grandaddy songs home, was this whole storytelling aspect. Creating these little worlds and creating sounds and creating lines [where] you almost have to create your own little image to go with what you're hearing. [...] I had this recurring image throughout the album, and I don't know where this came from. It's this recurring image, of some sort of tragedy. It's a woman, stranded, up high, in a blizzard, among the rocks and a guy who is down in the valley who can't do anything about it and its this distress of him knowing he can't do anything about it. I think there are two or three songs, where that imagery pops up."[2]
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 71/100[3] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| Consequence of Sound | C+[1] |
| Pitchfork | 5.9/10[5] |
AllMusic's Tim Sendra gave the album a positive review, stating "Dept. of Disappearance shows that far from vanishing, Lytle is making a claim to be one of the more interesting and consistent singer-songwriters around; willing to take sonic chances, but always delivering music that's as much about feel as it is about meaning."[4]
Stephen Deusner of Pitchfork gave the album a mixed review, noting "[The track 'Your Final Setting Sun'] says more about Lytle's career than any veiled lyric could: If he can't push himself in new directions, he'll be stuck at his desk job, pushing paper for the Department of Disappearance forever."[5]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Jason Lytle
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Dept. of Disappearance" | 4:33 |
| 2. | "Matterhorn" | 5:15 |
| 3. | "Young Saints" | 4:07 |
| 4. | "Hangtown" | 3:51 |
| 5. | "Get Up and Go" | 2:15 |
| 6. | "Last Problem of the Alps" | 5:44 |
| 7. | "Willow Wand Willow Wand" | 3:47 |
| 8. | "Somewhere There's a Someone" | 6:15 |
| 9. | "Chopin Drives Truck to the Dump" | 0:34 |
| 10. | "Your Final Setting Sun" | 5:09 |
| 11. | "Gimme Click Gimme Grid" | 8:13 |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 12. | "Flyberbonk" | 2:49 |
| 13. | "Elko in the Rain" | 4:01 |
| 14. | "Hangtown (Alternate Version)" | 4:20 |
| 15. | "Your Final Setting Sun (Australian Acoustic)" | 7:26 |
Personnel
- Jason Lytle - vocals, guitar, keyboards, piano, drums, percussion, dulcimer, melodica, effects, production, recording, engineering, mixing, album art, photography
- Additional personnel
- Brett Allen - recording assistance
- Larry Crane - mixing
- Greg Calbi - mastering
- Rob Jones - album layout and design
- Stefano Felcini - photography
- John Garner - cover photograph
References
- ^ a b Bray, Ryan (October 12, 2012). "Jason Lytle – Dept. of Disappearance | Album Reviews | Consequence of Sound". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
- ^ a b Ayers, Mike. "Jason Lytle on the Future of Grandaddy and His New Solo Record 'Dept. of Disappearance'". mtvhive.com. Retrieved November 4, 2012.
- ^ "Department of Disappearance by Jason Lytle". Metacritic. Retrieved 19 September 2016.
- ^ a b Sendra, Tim. "Dept. of Disappearance - Jason Lytle | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards |". AllMusic. Retrieved December 19, 2014.
- ^ a b M. Deusner, Stephen. "Jason Lytle: Dept. of Disappearance". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 4, 2012.
External links
- Dept. of Disappearance Archived 2020-10-27 at the Wayback Machine on Anti- Records' official website
