Have We Met by Destroyer [6/10]

Dan Bejar of Destroyer is one of the quirkiest, most intriguing indie rock artists making music. His thirteenth album in a quarter century, “Have We Met” is a kaleidoscope of electronic and guitars, smoothed out by strong bass beats, constructed around free-form abstract poetry. One of the last “I enunciate like Bowie” vocalists around, here Bejar’s lovely voice is often hushed, close to talking. The lyrics are impressionistic oddments that compel attention. The songs brood or swoop or fester, forming a whole that is equally at home on the car radio and in a candlelit living room. Occasional frittery is easily forgiven. Best tracks include the unusually dirty, funky, slow “Cue synthesiser”; the altogether different, ambient “The television music supervisor,” with its hushed voicing and wacko lyrics; and the moody, drifting, winding-up melodies in “The Raven,” which kicks off with lovely lyrics: “Just look at the world around, actually, don’t look.” If you’re not familiar with Destroyer, exercise some caution, but “Have We Met” is a fine, idiosyncratic introduction.