Parquet Courts - Tally All The Things You Broke (EP)

Tally All The Things That You Broke is far more than a stopgap in between full-lengths; it’s the sound of Parquet Courts stretching out. Opener “You’ve Got Me Wonderin’ Now,” with its melodic drive and persistent Flutophone running alongside the melody, balances the manic tendencies of “Descend (The Way),” which would have fit on Light Up Gold, and extended rager “The More It Works,” which would fit in a live set between Tyvek and Eddy Current Suppression Ring. “Fall On Yr Face” presents a classic desert trawler, lopsided and tuneful, the sound of the end of a long day. But the day is just beginning for the protagonist of “He’s Seein’ Paths,” junkyard drum loops and doorbell samples framing Andrew Savage’s eight-minute stream-of-consciousness rap about the trials and tribulations of a marijuana delivery service representative, zipping around the city on his bike. Simultaneously the link between Parquet Courts and Ween, or Parquet Courts and Beck, it frames the band coming from a new place, and is a post-millenial NYC anthem, quintessential sounds for anyone who’s ever waited in anticipation of dialing that number, or anyone who’s put on their game face and rode from point A to point B in the snarl of vicious traffic.