Dirty Projectors have it all: the akimbo folk soul of Jeff Buckley, iconoclastic pop deconstruction a la Panda Bear, irresistibly ethereal, strange harmonies recalling School of Seven Bells, surprisingly effective ethnic cops evoking their Ivy League peers in Vampire Weekend – and contender for possibly album of 2009 in the band’s latest release, Bitte Orca. Bitte Orca may be the most acclaimed release of the year, in a year of masterpieces (cf: The Horrors, Bat For Lashes, Grizzly Bear, Animal Collective et al…). The almighty Pitchfork gave Bitte a statistically shocking 9.2 out of 10 rating.

Bitte Orca’s shambolic surfaces belie the massive  of DP’s mastermind, Brooklyn-based, Yale educated Dave Longstreth. Longstreth first came to blog/critical attention via 2007’s Rise Above which free associated its way through an iconoclastic free form homage to Black Flag’s punk classic LP Damaged. Rise Above was a cunning stunt indeed, yet it didn’t prepare for the fluid genius of Bitte Orca. Downright odd downright approachable, its highlights – the post-punk rewiring of ‘60s folk rock on “The Bride,” the Timbaland groove by way of Williamsburg indie psychedelia of “Stillness Is The Move” – simply astound. Dirty Projectors ultimately transcend their influences, however, because of these bold inside moves – sonic hubris hasn’t sounded this intimately, expertly undone in some time.