When Social Studies enetered the studio with Eli Crews (tUnE-yArDs, Deerhoof) to record its sophomore record Developer, the strategy was to strip the production down to the barest of bones and leave only the most vital of textures. The original version of “Terracur” is jagged until it becomes absolutely necessary for the guitar work to respond to Natalia Rogovin's harrowing vocals. The song begins with its wings tucked, huddled low, until the bursts of synth flourishes push it open and the beauty of its wingspan is revealed – from bare to beautific in four minutes.
Ellie Herring's “Terracur” remix regresses the Social Studies sound to its 2010 record Wind Up Wooden Heart. Despite its buzzing hum of organs and muffled bone percussion, the mood of dark pop is not altered from the original. Herring proves Social Studies can still have its bells and whistles and shake us to our inner being. The original is a one-sided conversation, in which Rogovin is laying into someone who's running like they've got no choice. Her words ride on letting that someone do the damage they seem hellbent on fulfilling. Herring's remix though, with its upliftment of refrains like “nothing much left to say” and “we go on” is focused on the aftermath. The “Terracur” remix is picking the shattered glass, the wreckage, and seeking the courage to carry on. It's not only a remix, but it is Terracur Pt. II.
Social Studies' Developer is out now on Antenna Farm Records. Read about it further in our Best Albums of November 2012.
