If mathematics or advanced musical theory are not your strong suit, then Confidence Freaks Me Out might make an intimidating first impression. The second album from Tar Of, the Brooklyn-based duo of multi-instrumentalists Ramin Rahni and Ariyan Basu, is defined by unusual time signatures and impossible-to-predict textures that only occasionally tumble in the direction of pop songcraft. Like an uber-nerd going long on their latest obsession, Confidence Freaks Me Out takes some time to warm to, warding off those unwilling to sift through the discordance.
But Tar Of aren’t here to bore you. As they narrate in an Instagram post describing the creation of the album cover, the duo collaborated with a mathematician and a felt artist to visualize the 11/8 time signature of lead single “Amused by Their Comment” as a cone of equal proportions, sliced to reflect the song’s 2-1-3-2-1-3 rhythmic patterning. The cone then reappears as the party hats that Rahni and Basu wear in press photos and in the icing on a Confidence Freaks Me Out-shaped cake. Instead of treating nerdiness like a members-only club, Tar Of want to invite you to celebrate.
Confidence Freaks Me Out charts a dizzying path through thickets of Reichian repetition, spacious, circular dance tracks like Kate NV’s, and the orchestral chamber pop of Cate Le Bon, with dashes of Animal Collective-esque vocal harmonics familiar from the duo’s earlier records. “Amused by Their Comment” eloquently captures the shambolic spirit, assembling layers of toy piano, sawtooth synth, guitar, trumpet, saxophone, clarinet, and zurna, a double reed woodwind instrument often used in Assyrian folk music. Each instrument seemingly follows its own rhythmic dictates, latticing into a danceable pattern as improbable as Thom Yorke’s in “Lotus Flower.” On “Berry,” muted glockenspiel, an autoharp played with chopsticks, and the sound of a cracked La Croix can create a dreamy instrumental palette for whimsical lyrics about “my toot Feri,” melding the Farsi word for mulberry (toot) with the name of Basu’s grandmother, Feri. The interwoven instrumental and lyrical nods to Iran, detailed in behind-the-scenes Instagram posts, are a loving testament to the duo’s shared cultural roots.
Daniel D`Amico for SANREMO.FM
