Ratatat

After the walls between rock, electronic, and hip-hop are destroyed, Ratatat of New York City, appears out of the debris.  Ratatat was formed in 2001 by Mike Stroud (guitar) and Evan Mast (synthesizer/producer) when they were students at Skidmore College. Yes, their sound really is a fusion of rock, electronic, and hip-hop. As Mast lays down beats and synthesizer melodies, Stroud plays guitar riffs and solos over it.

Their first self titled album, “Ratatat”, is by far their best. The name of the opening song, “Seventeen Years”, comes from a dialogue from MC Young Churf who says, “I've been rapping for about seventeen years, okay? I don't write my stuff anymore, I just kick it from my head, y'know what I'm sayin', I can do that. No disrespect, but that's how I am.” This song epitomizes everything I like about Ratatat. It’s catchy, and very danceable. It’s so danceable it was actually played at the party scene in the film Cloverfield.  The mood of the song goes through several changes starting very happy and upbeat, with simple and blissful guitar soloing. It quickly gets frantic, but soon after it cools down to a soothing synthesizer harmony. The ending makes it my favorite chill-out song. You really need to listen to this song to get a feel for Ratatat. The rest of the album follows suite with similar songs weaving rock and electronic blankets over hip-hop beats that give it texture.

Sometime last fall I went to hang out with my friend Zack and his roommate, Andy, was around. Since we were pretty much in the mood to chill, Andy decided to play some appropriate music.  The song started out with a creepy echoing synthesizer riff overlapping a guitar twang, with an underlying beat. I thought to myself, “Oh this is pretty chill.” A second later a wild cat’s roar chimed in. After that the song evolved and I became really interested, and it turns out the name of the song is “Wildcat” off of “Classics”, their second album. “Classics” does some of the same things as “Ratatat”; however, there is a very noticeable touch of experimentation.  I really enjoy this album as well because all of the songs are intriguing. I say intriguing because there is so much variance on them that I still don’t know when a song is going to develop more.  

In early June, I was cruising on the internet looking for music at the speed of light. Something caught my eye and I had to slam on the breaks and peel my face off the monitor. Ratatat was planning on releasing another album, appropriate titled “LP3”. I got really excited about it and grabbed a copy as soon as I could. At first, it seemed really fun to listen to. They were now experimenting with their percussion and a lot more programmed sounds.  After a few runs through the album, I decided I didn’t like it. It’s a really big turn from their previous work. It’s got a psychedelic feel to it, and does have some crazy melodies. Overall though, it isn’t the same Ratatat I loved. If you’re really interested though, “Brulee” is a nice and mellow song that still has an old Ratatat sound.