From the very first note, the sounds on Maraqopa, Damien Jurado’s eleventh album, weave a rich tapestry of psych-folk that is a worthy homage to the 1970s. The most obvious of Jurado’s influences is Neil Young, especially on the album’s title track, but he puts such a modern spin on his folk that it’s hard to fault him for his overt references to the past. It doesn’t sound like Jurado is doing his best Neil Young impression. Rather, it seems that he is channeling the haunted spirit of his forefathers of folk and carrying the torch in their stead.
On “Nothing is the News,” the arrangement is so dense with guitar and drums that it reads like a Hendrix jam. Or, perhaps, The Doors are a better reference point for that particular track. The lyrics are so poetic, so Morrisonesque, and the jam so aggressive, that it’s hard not to feel that we’re listening to a lost track from The Doors. In fact, much of the lyrical content on Maraqopa is profoundly emotional, a fact that is augmented by beautifully sentimental and languid melodies.
All of this living in the past is all well and good, but it does not do proper service to what Jurado accomplishes on Maraqopa. It is the way in which he blends modern techniques with classic folk morays that makes the album something special. On “Reel to Reel,” the distorted flute-synthesizer and steady beat are very reminiscent of one of Jurado’s more electronic-driven contemporaries, Bibio. The use of synthesized sounds throughout the album adds layers upon layers of depth to nearly every song. It is this deft blend of strange sonic textures along with traditional ones that gives Maraqopa a signature feel, something that is integrally a part of Jurado’s musical identity.
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