Dance Called Memory
Nation of Language is one of the 2020s’ undeniable indie-rock success stories, as the Brooklyn trio’s strange but delectable alchemy of pulsing electronic pop and the oaky, baroque sounds of late-2000s indie have reached a steadily growing audience with each release. You’ve likely heard “Weak in Your Light” from 2023’s *Strange Disciple* if you’ve turned on a single TV show in the last few years, and their fourth album *Dance Called Memory* continues their hot streak of broadly appealing and emotionally resonant songcraft. With frequent collaborator and LCD Soundsystem live member Nick Millhiser behind the boards, these 10 songs sparkle and bounce with every rhythmic twist, as lead singer Ian Richard Devaney’s angelic vocals hover above the proceedings. And lest you think they’re becoming easy to pin down, *Dance Called Memory* has a few tricks up its sleeve: Witness the brittle backbeats that make up the framework of “In Another Life” or the glistening shoegaze textures that course through “Now That You’re Gone.” It’s these subtle tweaks to their sound that prove that, even as they grow in popularity, Nation of Language continues to evolve in new and surprising ways.
Perhaps their most tonally varied outing since their debut, Dance Called Memory shows Nation of Language have the songs (and the heart) to cross the pop threshold if they choose.
Nation of Language takes a new approach for their first album under Sub Pop, with its bandleader taking you into the dark depths of his psyche.
Dance Called Memory is something of a pivotal album in its own modest way. It's Nation of Language's most introspective and darkest record.
Dance Called Memory album review by Maria Luisa Richter. The Brooklyn trio's new album is now available via Sub Pop Records and DSPs