“He Would Have Laughed” — Deerhunter
This song doesn’t feel written so much as slowly dissolved into existence.
Created as a tribute to Jay Reatard after his death, “He Would Have Laughed” carries this enormous floating grief without becoming heavy-handed. It stretches time. Repetition becomes meditation. Noise becomes warmth. By the end, it feels less like listening to a song and more like surviving inside a memory.
Absolutely devastating in the gentlest possible way.