Intentional Listening: This Magnificent Bird Will Rise by Deerhoof

Beauty out of dissonance

Deerhoof, This Magnificent Bird Will Rise
From Reveille, 2002
3:33

Photo by Shervin Lainez

Today’s intentional listening lesson is going to be something of the polar opposite of the last one. Where “Kanga Roo” by Big Star is a lesson in the power of dissonance inside something beautiful and melodic, this song, “The Magnificent Bird Will Rise” by Deerhoof, manages to create a thing of real beauty inside a buzzsaw of dissonance.

But first, let’s listen.

As before, I invite you to sit somewhere comfortable either wearing headphones or in front of good speakers. Preferably you’re not listening to this on your phone or your laptop speakers; for this exercise to *really work* it requires some patience on your part, to set aside what you are doing and devote the next three and a half minutes to listening to this song in the most advantageous environment possible.

Good to go? All right, press play: