Just like the guy in the tub on this record's cover, you might consider singles to be completely different animals. Not usually beholden to the greater aesthetic or weight of an album, the single can stand on its own two pegs. It can be cranked out independently, ferociously, and perhaps most importantly in the case of a one Jay Reatard, quickly. Wham. Bam. Onto the next.
Such is the Taz-like clip with which Reatard has cranked out micro-epics since the release of his incredible solo debut, 2006's Blood Visions. That garage-punk opus spawned many of the cuts on Singles 06-07, the singles compilation released by the In the Red label just four months ago. Now he's back with Matador Singles '08, a collection of limited-edition singles recorded and released, like the title promises, this year for Matador. Harnessing his hyperactive work rate, Reatard's new home let him loose in what seems to be his natural habitat, encouraging him to headbutt a variety of sounds before recording a follow-up full-length.
While the In the Red singles share a certain wealth of diversity (synths!) with their Matador cousins, they didn't signal a major shift in sound. But here, Reatard goes the full Ramone, imbuing each recording with an expansive pop sensibility. And though this collection doesn't benefit from the sequencing a standard LP would, it does nicely chart the directions in which Reatard's self-described "schizophrenic" musical jones have hurried him. First A-Side "See/Saw" is a hail of Tommy gun guitar work and Reatard's rubbery bark, a noticeably snottier departure from the collapsed-lung screams listeners are accustomed to hearing from him.
"See/Saw", alongside its excellent B-Side "Screaming Hand", is built on a healthy spine of acoustic guitar. A no-no in the rulebook of pure punk, it's an approach that defines many of Reatard's fresher foundations-- most dramatically, the gentle whispers (gasp!) of the kiwi-pop inflected single that wrapped up the series. That trio of songs-- "No Time", "You Were Sleeping", and the gorgeous "I'm Watching You"-- hint at a possible sound for next year's full-length, but they don't effectively showcase what Reatard does best: erecting epics in spaces most would deem too tight for them. Listen to the way "Always Wanting More" breaks loose on the back of a caped riff and a chorus no basement or half pipe could contain. It's a moment bested on this record only by the final 30 seconds of hyper-caffeinated post punk dirge "Trapped Here".
Reatard's weaknesses present themselves when he leans too hard on the familiar-- "D.O.A." is a bit by-the-numbers-- or is out of his comfort zone, as he is on a nearly five-minute take on Deerhunter's "Flourescent Grey" built on drone and electric moans. Considerably longer than anything else in his jamography, Reatard is able to take a contemporary band's song and make it his own, no matter how radically the sonic paradigm might differ. It's admirable, but if he were to take a shot at writing something equally ambitious, with the energy you'd expect from him, the result could be dizzying. For now, he's making things look easy.
