Atlas Sound - Logos

It's been a bit of a crazy year for Bradford Cox, the man behind Atlas Sound and the mighty Deerhunter, if he's not been selling out venues as big as Koko he's been sharing the stage with the likes of Kim Deal and co and after the huge critical success of Deerhunter's Microcastle last year, things keep getting better and better and now with the imminent release of his second solo album under the moniker of Atlas Sound Cox pushes boundaries that have been touched on in the past even further and with collaborations with some extremely highly regarded musicians such as Panda Bear of Animal Collective and Laetitia Sadier from Stereolab people are bound to go nuts for Logos.
The album itself has a fragile intimacy that makes you think this album could have only come recorded straight out of his bedroom, creating a very personal feel although Cox states the lyrics are far from autobiographical and concentrate on a more panoramic view of life. Logos is a project that Cox has worked through on and off for a while, recording songs over the course of two years on tourbuses, backstage at venues and God knows where else, you can see where the influence of his peers has aided in the creation making Logos a huge cut above the usual generic 'solo' albums. I must admit it took a few listens to really latch on to the textures and sounds that are on offer, with the first few tracks easing the listener in rather than grabbing them by the balls, the real turning point for me was when I heard the eight minute 'Quick Canal' with vocals coming from the wonderful Laetitia Sadier who Cox quotes as one of his idols, the track is truly euphoric, it came out of nowhere, it is one of those songs that is a perfect late night chill out song all that's needed is to let the vocals and glitches flow and echo majestically and let the distorted guitars build up ever so slowly.
That was my gateway into an album full of surprises and although the collaborations are more of an instant hit, give the rest of the album time and you will find yourself discovering more and more with each listen.