*Review* The Drones-Halivah (ATP)

Rating:****

The Drones are a quartet from Victoria, who specialise in slow building- down beat swamp rock in a sense. Hard to catergorize as a sound, but encompasses a hard hitting element of story telling in their compositions.

Influenced by Neil Young, story telling reminiscent of Tom Waits, it's a hybrid of all kinds of styles with a bluesy guitar sound which meanders off into dissonance heavily similar to sonic youth or bands of that ilk.

They took out the Australian Music Prize in 2006 for their album "Wait Long by the River and the Bodies of Your Enemies Will Float By". Which generated a lot of rotation amongst triple j with both Tracks, "Sharkfin Blues" and "Baby2".

Gala Mill which was the follow up to Wait Long by the River.. was also nominated for the AMP award.

Now with 2008's Havilah, we have come to expect a standard and mood from the band with each set that they deliver. Gala Mill intiated a clause which must be followed concerning the band's character. It you want to listen to the Drones, start from the beginning, and follow the story straight from the start.

Stories will unfold, and vocalist Gareth Liddiard will take you their with his distinctively Australian rasp, which takes you beyond the sound of the song, and straight to the emotional state of the characters involved in these songs.

Gala Mill, and it's predecessor were at risk of becoming to dissonant for their own in amongst the longer tracks of those albums.

Gala Mill was very dark, although Havilah makes a refreshing change and adds a bit more light and accessibility to their sound.

"Nail it Down", the opener sees an upbeat start, an dynamic time shifts complement the ebb and flow of the song, accompanied by terrific solo work.

"The Drifting Housewife", is a slow building tale of abandonment which self destructs as it finishes.

The First seven tracks of this album, build a lot of momentum, and don't lag behind longer than they have to. That is the biggest strength of the album.

The other three albums had momentary signs of disappearing into their own echo, passages of dissonance which didn't really compliment the compositions that much. This set you can't tire of, because the majority of the first half is so enjoyable, that by the time the slower tracks emerge, you have been escounsed in the mood of the album and you can't wait for the second time around.

That is something which has been missing from the last Drones albums. This time around it is their best effort to date. A well rounded, consistent set of songs in the manner of which they were intended, but infused with an element of lightness which makes it a definite addition to any collection, and anyone who is interested in this band..

You cant help but feel, that a band comes along and they can either build a big reputation and peak early and not follow up on their success. Or upon each release, reveal another side of themselves and accentuate their strengths in a way which makes it exciting and enjoyable for the fans and people who have not heard them before. The Drones are in the later, they keep building as an act, and deserve all the recognition they can get.