Dirty Three - Towards the low sun review

Towards the low sun starts in a disorientating storm and through the tempest, threads of beauty start to appear. First track, Furnace Skies is a Grinderman-esque collision of sounds that is unsettling as it is unexpected but as the song progresses, a gentle guitar and violin line can be discerned through the chaos. The Dirty Three have returned but even as elder statesmen of the indie scene you can hardly file them under easy listening. That austere beauty is continued in the second track Sometimes I Forget You've Gone although someone forgot to tell Jim White who drums like a maniac under sparsest of canvasses.

It is this ability to train elegant phrasing with discord that sets the Dirty Three aside from their peers - whoever they are. They are often lumped in with post-rock but that seems too convenient and simplistic. The first time I saw the Dirty Three in any iteration was when Jim White and Warren Ellis played with Aussie rock legend Kim Salmon (Beasts of Bourbon, The Scientists) and that show was post-nothing - it was electric rock n' roll (Ellis and White recorded one album with Salmon called Hey Believer - track it down). As such, every time I've seen the Dirty Three there is no sense that it is anything other than three men pushing the boundaries of rock and roll with Ellis playing a spaced out improvising Hendrix like virtuoso to White and Turner's foundation groove. This is not easy music sometimes but it is always rewarding.

However, the rock has mellowed over time and Towards the low sun continues the Dirty Three's trend inward as they have on their last two records Cinder and She has no strings Apollo. Songs such as Moon on the Land, Pier and Rain Song are soulful invocations and concise statements rather than extended rock jams that peppered their classic Ocean Songs period. That Was Was is the rockiest thing here with Ellis unleashing his distortion pedals on a whipsmart (un)conventional Turner boogie.

All of the tracks here are quality, worth exploring with repeat listens but sadly, I feel the Dirty Three have reached the point where whatever record they produce will be a slight disappointment. As a band they are in the unenviable position of producing two masterpieces (Horse Stories and Ocean Songs) and as such, almost every album since then will suffer (this happens a lot - I mean in literary terms it's like Don DeLillo's Underworld, a novel he will never surpass no matter what he writes). To be honest, that's a total cop out criticism wise but that's just how I feel. But despite that feeling, there is something exhilarating and rare in the music that the Dirty Three produces - it is music without boundaries, without fear and without care for what I think. Another Dirty Three record is cause for celebration...

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New Dirty Three record Toward the Low Sun is streaming now...

Holy shit, I love this band - here it is! Still wrapping my head around it but sounds killer...

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A song a day: Dirty Three - Authentic Celestial Music

There is some music that needs little explanation. Three musicians create something so epic, so moving and so beyond the norms of beauty that it is indescribable. You either get it or you don't...

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Love you live...

Inspired by Matt’s recent posts about Hammerbox and Everclear, I started thinking about the best live shows I’ve seen. A great show can be a magical thing and it’s often a combination of elements that coalesce into a cocktail of awesomeness. For me, that list may include:

a) Any band being ‘on’ and playing a devastating show

b) Being at the height of your fandom when you see a gig

c) Seeing a band/artist you’ve loved for years but haven’t had the opportunity to see before (a common occurrence for fans in Australia)

d) Never heard the band/artist before but having that feeling that your life has just being changed.

e) Something special happens that night either on stage or with the venue

f) It ties in with a memorable moment in your life.

For example, my number one gig is Queens on the Songs for the Deaf tour. I don’t think there’s anything as special as standing second row watching your favourite band at the height of their powers play your favourite album while PJ Harvey dances at the side of the stage. Sometimes a show just clicks and it transcends the ages. Anyhow, these are the shows that live large in my memory:

1. Queens of the Stone Age – Metro Theatre, Sydney, 2003

2. Bob Mould – The Zoo, Brisbane, 2002

3. Sleater Kinney - Gaelic Club, Sydney 2002

4. Mogwai – Newtown RSL, Sydney 1999

5. PJ Harvey – Enmore Theatre, Sydney 2001

6. Superchunk – Livid Festival, Brisbane 1994

7. You Am I – Livid Festival, Brisbane 1992

8. Built to Spill – Petersham Bowling Club, Sydney 2008

9. Jesus Lizard – The Globe, Sydney 1998

10. Dirty Three – The Metro, Sydney 1999

All are memorable for different reasons ranging from Superchunk having a terrible gig technically but being all the more entertaining for it to seeing the Dirty Three on a combination of flu tablets and beer and starting to hallucinate to the music. Shows that just miss out are Faith No More (1995), Jawbreaker (1995), Fugazi (1997), Shihad (about 20 times), Mark Eitzel (2008) and Metallica (2010, such a good time). The one thing about all those shows, they all sounded amazing (except Superchunk) so tip your sound woman/man at the door.

Then there are the disappointments such as Radiohead, Ryan Adams, Iron and Wine, Stereolab and Sigur Ros – the main crime being that they were boring or bad. Oh and those fucking gigs I was dragged to being assured me a good time – Steve Malkmus and the oh so pretentious Tortoise. If I wanted to spend the night watching an aloof dude twiddle on his guitar while ignoring the relentless screams for Gold Soundz, I’m sure I could have arranged that at home. Tortoise’s ploy of refusing to play until the room went silent seemed like bullshit to me and then they played their monotonous post-rock to the Wire (magazine) set who were having orgasms at every xylophone solo – dull, dull, dull…

Anyhow, just thinking on it. I don’t get out to shows too often at the moment but of the hundreds of shows I’ve seen, it makes me think of all the enjoyment, nourishment and positivity music has brought to my life. I think we can all agree, music rocks. But also here's hoping my favourite concert event is yet to come...

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