Dusted
Total Dust
Release Date: Jul 10, 2012
Genre(s): Electronic, Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock
Record label: Polyvinyl
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Album Review: Total Dust by Dusted
Very Good, Based on 5 Critics
Based on rating 4/5
DUSTED play Amsterdam Brewery as part of the Open Roof Festival on August 16. See listing. Rating: NNNN Besides his day job as knob-twiddler in Holy Fuck, Brian Borcherdt, one-time guitarist for indie rock lifers By Divine Right, has also had a solo career that's stayed under the radar. That's probably not a mistake.
Based on rating 7.3/10
Brian Borcherdt will be spending this weekend sharing backstage catering with the likes of Skrillex, Simian Mobile Disco, and Bassnectar at Disco Biscuits' massive Camp Bisco blowout in upstate New York. And that's just another day at the office for Borcherdt and his band Holy Fuck, whose juddering synth-rock is just funky enough to land them regular bookings at EDM festivals. But it's a circumstance that would've seemed preposterous 10 years ago, when Borcherdt first settled in Toronto after moving from his native Nova Scotia.
Based on rating 7/10
When many artists embark on solo or side projects, they end up making music that sounds only slightly different than their main body of work. Not so for Brian Borcherdt, whose mellow, not especially electronic ramblings on Dusted's debut album, Total Dust, may come as a surprise to listeners familiar only with his work in the dance-rock duo Holy Fuck. With producer Leon Taheny, Borcherdt gets as far away from Holy Fuck as quickly as possible: "All Comes Down" opens Total Dust with bittersweet, lo-fi musings that nod not only to his solo efforts like his 2008 album Coyotes, but also to his time in By Divine Right, an early-2000s act that also featured Leslie Feist and Broken Social Scene's Brendan Canning.
Based on rating C+
Holy Fuck’s Brian Borcherdt has been working as an alt-country rocker for some years, recently forming Dusted with producer Leon Taheny (Final Fantasy, Rituals). Their debut LP, Total Dust, pairs Borcherdt’s twin sensibilities, combining haunting melodies with a simple, folksy vibe, for spellbinding results. “Pale Light” matches Borcherdt’s vocals with the echo of an enormous, lonesome guitar, creating an effect that enhances both parts without ever making either sound less desolate.
Opinion: Very Good
Brian Borcherdt is not a name you’d typically associate with acoustic folk; the man has spent the last six years of his life touring with Canadian electronica outfit Holy Fuck. However, he has since stepped out from behind the synth and 35 mm film synchronizer to try his hand at something new. The result is the raw and crunchy folk record Total Dust, which he released under the name Dusted.Total Dust‘s first single, “(Into The) Atmosphere,” might shock fans of Borcherdt’s previous work because of the song’s brightness.
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