Track Of The Day: Deerhoof - "The Trouble with Candyhands"

One of the most frustrating things for a music writer is when a band gives you absolutely nothing to criticize.  Deerhoof has been steadily giving their listeners solid album after solid album since 1997, racking up eleven LPs in the process.  Their twelfth, Breakup Song, hits stores September 4th, and if the first track "The Trouble with Candyhands" is any indication, then there's nothing that can faze this band.

In my opinion, the only reason Deerhoof isn't a household name is that front-woman Satomi Matsuzaki's cutesy voice can at times act more as an instrument than as the sort of pop hook that the mainstream prefers to sing along to.  "The Trouble with Candyhands" seems to address this issue with a "proper" and catchy chorus, repeating "When you bring me flowers" until it's good and stuck in your head.  Die-hard Deerhoof fans might think that such a hook would be a distraction from the band's complicated and unprecedented talent, but it's thankfully not the case,  Even within the restraints of "normal" songwriting, Deerhoof still shines as one of the most inventive and downright special bands we've currently got going.