The Daughter of Cloud Review

My introduction to the band Of Montreal (who are, in fact, of Georgia) came in the form of a nearly twelve minute song that occasionally played at my last job — I was doing technical support for a small software company and we almost always had music playing in the background. During the occasional lulls in calls it was comforting to break the silence with music and when a song spends a number of minutes getting started and works its way to a fiery climax all while fantastic lyrics are sung. I only wish that I had a bigger music budget when I had gotten into them as there are plenty of records of theirs to buy as well as a lovely cassette box set.

I was happy to have found the new album by Of Montreal, The Daughter of Cloud, on Spotify. The Daughter of Cloud is a real treat with seventeen beefy tracks into which you can sink your music loving teeth. Let us start with the clever song “Sails, Hermaphroditic” — here is the official musical video from their label.

It’s no wonder this song was chosen for making a video with its clever lyrics and intense sound. Toward the end, they sing :

I broke a window and then passed out in your car
Just then we shared spiritual hallucination
This synth solo about to pay my bills

It may be awhile before I understand a lot of the songs on the album — there are some songs by Of Montreal that require multiple listenings before you understand it at all.

Much of the rest of the album has similarly piercing sound to it. There are a wide variety of tracks to satisfy the listener — I almost wonder if this album couldn’t have been possibly split into two albums with two releases, but clearly the band was eager to get out the album as it was.

The Daughter of Cloud is definitely a solid album and worth your listening time. If you, like me, are in not the best financial shape or just don’t have the extra money for the album — give it a listen on Spotify and see if it is worth getting on vinyl when you have the extra dosh.