The self-titled 7th album from the Dirty Projectors was dark as the band had gone through a dramatic restructuring following the break-up of David Longstreth and bandmate Amber Coffman. A return to form of sorts (the first few DP releases were essentially solo efforts), Longstreth handled the entire LP on his own, and the project, understandably, was full of resentment and hate. For Lamp Lit Prose, the mood lifts substantially, and the change is obvious right from the opening notes of the lead single, "Break-Thru." An imaginative, hopeful, and a decidedly more Dirty Projectors-like record, Longstreth once again handles most of the production, but the band has been rebuilt to include Maia Friedman, Felicia Douglass, Kristin Slipp, Nat Baldwin, and Mike Daniel Johnson. Furthermore, the group enlists choice collaborators on songs like "I Feel Energy" (Amber Mark) and "Right Now" (Syd), the result being an expansive, far-reaching take on pop and rock that thinks outside of the box and is full of pleasant surprises. In addition to the aforementioned picks, check out "That's A Lifestyle" and "Zombie Conqueror" featuring Empress Of.

• limited edition, blue OR red randomly colored vinyl  
• comes w/ mp3s
• music label: Domino 2018

reviewed by pocari papi 07/18