“Bizness”
from the album w h o k i l l
2011
iTunes
There was an unmistakable sense of momentum being gained as Merrill Garbus took her tUnE-yArDs songs out on the road following the 2009 release of BiRd-BrAiNs. The lo-fi nature of those recordings initially sounded like they might make an awkward transition to live performance, but instead the opposite was true; Garbus wrung new life out of each track and seemed to accrue more confidence with each passing show. That unshakable sense of belief surges through “Bizness,” the first track from the forthcoming w h o k i l l, which is constructed around clattering rim-shot drum hits, playful vocal manipulation, zigzagging horn parts, and odd loops of audio ephemera Garbus has picked up and processed.
As such, it forms a loose thread to the kitchen sink aesthetic of BiRd-BrAiNs, but everything has been ratcheted up a notch here, from a tightness in the playing to the belted out lead vocal turn. The actual words scarcely matter when Garbus hits her stride — the delivery is so giddy, so overpowering, so full of life and vigor and preternatural force that it’s impressive just to hear the sound swell up out of her lungs. Reference points drift in and out as the song progresses, including the 1980s dance-punk fusions of Pigbag and Rip Rig & Panic, plus a continued fascination with African rhythms in the indie rock sphere. But Garbus’ authoritative vocalizing and approach to song structure, where each stop-start turn feels like a new mini narrative unfolding, makes this a unique and continually beguiling listen.