January 11, 2015 — Mark Griffin
Favorite Albums of 2014: Under Color of Official Right, by Protomartyr
Stripped down, atmospheric art-post-whatever-punk from Detroit. Protomartyr’s singer, Joe Casey, reminds me of The National’s Matt Berninger, besuited, standing stoically and roughly crooning, a calm center as the storm rises around him. The songs are great: catchy, ferocious, moody, even pretty, and concise as hell (14 songs in less than 35 minutes). A terrific album, and recommended for fans of Parquet Courts, postpunk in general and, what the hell, The National. My being any more florid than that wouldn’t be in keeping with their style, so here’s the first track, “Maidenhead”.
Buy it here.