The Dodos

For the Dodos, recording a successor to their career-making 2008 album, Visiter, was easy and even exhilarating, but recovering from the fallout has been much more difficult. In 2008, the San Francisco duo introduced their unique sound to a wider audience via their Frenchkiss Records debut, which was based on the democratic interplay between Meric Long's emphatic acoustic strumming and Logan Kroeber's hyperactive percussion. While there are many duos with identical lineups—from the Black Keys to the White Stripes—the Dodos weren't tinkering with any blues-rock template. Rather, they played something more akin to supercharged folk music.

For 2009's Time to Die, the Dodos hired multi-instrumentalist Keaton Snyder as a full-time member and replaced long-time producer John Askew (who had produced their first two albums) with Phil Ek (The Shins, Modest Mouse). "You can't just keep making records with the same people at the same place," says Long. "So we did another record with someone else, and it seemed like the right and exciting thing to do." The results were more melodic, although less immediately distinctive. Still, Long was surprised by the chilly response from critics and fans: "It was written off as sounding like the Shins. I don't care if people don't like the record, but if people don't really listen to it and put it in a place where it doesn't belong, that's upsetting. It's still us. It's just different."

Despite the setback, Long hopes Time to Die will be rediscovered by new fans who can hear it without that stigma. "It was definitely frustrating, and it was hard touring after that record, but in the larger scheme of things, when I see the merch table now with four records spread out, and Time to Die is setting there, I'm so fucking happy," he says. "The more records we make—and hopefully there will be many more—the more things will make sense."

It is tempting to call the Dodos' new record, No Colour, a return to form, although Long insists it's less a step backwards than a continuation of the band's relentless tinkering. Snyder left the group, and Long and Kroeber once again worked with Askew to recapture and build on their signature sound. "I didn't want to repeat the past," Long explains, "but it became apparent right away that we were all on the same page and wanted to do something different. We all wanted to play against that history we all had together."

Whether intentionally or not, the songs on No Colour seem to comment both directly and indirectly on that tough time in the band's career. "Don't give your eyes to others' vocations/ They will only keep you in your station," Long sings on "Don't Try and Hide It," with Neko Case singing back-up and asserting that sentiment with her usual authority. Where other bands might have faced extinction, the Dodos have learned a lot from their Time to Die experience—namely, to let such tribulations fuel rather than frustrate their music. —Stephen Deusner