(Post-Rock) Margins - Divide - 2012, MP3, 320 kbps

Surel Dirty Three’s Toward the Low Sun and Melbourne instrumental outfit Margins’ latest Divide, so close together, is no mere coincidence? Are these two Australian groups the sharp point of the vocal-free spearhead poised to excise the singer from the Australian musical landscape? Redundant queries aside, Divide sees these southern instrumentalists producing a pleasing and patient second album. Songs are layered slowly, content to incrementally add new elements and often resulting in a calming serenity. Elsewhere this approach can seem a little lackadaisical, with songs reaching a plateau before they can inspire an emotional response. Their experience soundtracking films live (including Return of the Jedi!) has obviously helped the four-piece’s development and they definitely achieve a Yoda-like level of tranquillity with this release. The only question to be asked of the new listener, however, is – prepared to listen to an album without vocals are you, hmm?