Burst Apart [CD]

The Antlers' 2009 album 'Hospice' was about as far from easy-listening
as it is possible to travel but in its own way was a magnificent invention.
The intensity of both the music and the subject matter was overwhelming.

'Burst Apart' is not without its difficult moments too but the general
mood seems to have lightened somewhat. The structure of many of the
new songs is more open-textured and approachable (on 'French Exit',
for example things become almost jolly!) The melodic content is more
defined, less elusive; the rhythms not so ambiguous or abrasive (although
the howling 'Parenthesis' packs a bitter punch to the solar plexus!)

Peter Silberman's voice finds a wider range of tone and colour than of
yore too; his falsetto sounds ever more confident and affecting.
His performances on the lovely 'No Windows', 'Hounds' and 'Corsicana'
are particularly (especially the latter) contemplative and beautiful.

The tiny 'Tiptoe' slips in and out of focus like a dream; a shadowy
wordless interlude haunted by disembodied hums and whines and clatters.

Final track 'Putting The Dog To Sleep' finds the band back in fine
maudlin form. Mr Silberman sings his heart out with authentic passion.
It is a slow-moving, sad and deeply-stirring coda to a very fine album.

With 'Burst Apart' The Antlers may well have delivered one of the year's
finest recordings so-far. Once heard it's hard to get it out of your head.

Highly Recommended.

Their last album was my favourite of 2009 so my hopes were high, though slightly concerned that they may have peaked. Worry not, Burst Apart is worth the wait, unclear yet whether it matches its predecessor but improving with every listen. Some critics have talked about a renewed positivity, yet that's not easy to fathom with titles like Every Night My Teeth Are Falling Out and Putting The Dog To Sleep. Another cheerless title, and opening track, I Don't Want Love is as catchy as they've done, Hounds also a possible single, Corsicana and the prior mentioned misery titles also excellent. Varied stuff, and a couple of tracks disappointing - French Exit too similar to Temper Trap, other tracks borrow from Portishead. Overall though it's more progress, and time will tell if it's a worthy successor to Hospice, but for now it's as good as I've heard in 2011.

At the risk of sounding repetitive, let me put this disclaimer in first - this record is no _Hospice_. It could never be - and it doesn't want to be. If anything it wants to distance itself from the aura of that stunning record. _Hospice_ was a one-off. A towering record of such emotional depth that very few modern bands (if any) can come close to achieving without sounding self-indulgent or over-wrought. With my own experience of being in an abusive relationship in the past (brought upon by a serious illness but thankfully not resulting in death) that record was a punch in the gut. It had me in knots. There were nights that I would listen to the record on repeat and not sleep a wink. Even now, I can't listen to songs like `Two' and `Wake' without shedding a tear or two. But I think in the end it made it easier for me to cope with my situation. Therefore you would understand my attachment to that record. But if there's one thing we must all do, is that we must move on. We have to move on.

_Burst Apart_ is the record of the band moving on (or trying to at the very least). The band sounds relaxed and willing to experiment. It may underwhelm you at first listen, but persistence pays off. There are no `wall of sound' songs like `Sylvia' (save maybe for parts of `Parenthesis' or `Every night my teeth...') on this record and I suspect that is what had me underwhelmed during initial listens. But then I made a conscious effort to listen to this record on it's own merit, as if it were the work of a new band. And that's when it started coming together. This is an experimental pop gem (I hate the label Indie). The songs may sound laid back and sparse but this is plenty of depth to the compositions. This sounds like a full band effort. The opener `I don't want love' really sets the mood for the set - downbeat lyrics and major key music. A couple of songs sound dangerously close to Radiohead (the aforementioned `Parenthesis' & `Everynight my teeth') but still retain the Antlers identity. `Rolled Together' is a shining example of how to make a song with a repetitive melody without getting boring - reminds me somewhat of Air and other chill-wave bands (and don't take it the wrong way ;). `No Widows' sounds like the one song that could have been on _Hospice_ without feeling out of place whereas the wonderfully gentle `Hounds' sounds like the work of a different band entirely.

The closer, `Putting the dog to sleep' is my personal favourite. With its wonderfully uncertain lyrics about love, life and the future, it personifies (for me at least) the theme of this album. We all want to move on, but will that lead us to a better place? Or will it lead us back to the traps that we had found ourselves in the first place. Maybe their next record will answer that question.

PS: Seeing them live in November in Manchester. Can't wait to hear live renditions of these songs and hopefully some off _Hospice_ too!