OCEAN SONGS

Another intriguing lo-fi post-rock piece from Dirty Three, the followup to Horse Stories continues the band's masterful evocation of a unique atmosphere - a collection of threadbare and sparse pieces which put the listener of mind of comfortable but worn-out clothes or ramshackle fishermen's pubs on isolated and windswept coast. We're not talking yo-ho-ho sea shanties here, but there's something about the way the album is structured, with its quiet lulls and occasional stormy exclamations, which suggests to me the cycle of the tides and the rolling waves of the open sea. Once again, Warren Ellis and his compatriots have a winner on their hands.