2009 saw the release of Love Of Diagrams' 3rd studio album - Nowhere Forever. The album is a palpable feast of indie jams and spaced out dynamics, but I can't help but think it could have been something more.
Instrumentally, the band has a great sound going on. They've given the bass guitar more of a presence than your average band and it pays off, giving the guitar time to go off into these airy solos or set up some grungy backing noise. You also hear a lot of different drumming styles varying from normal rock to a deep jungle like rhythm depending on the track. Overall, you end up getting a sound can be really involving, mosh friendly indie, a summery art punk vibe holding similarities to Sonic Youth, 90's era grunge and a tinge of that signature noise the Australian folk indie scene was making back around the early to mid 00s.
However, while it's apparent that these guys are talented musicians, there seems to be a real inconsistency in the quality of tracks across the whole album. There are points where I found myself listening through the whole thing and feeling that some of the slower songs lacked a certain 'dynamic' - the lyrics wouldn't be memorable, the jams would be rolling on for too long - it'd feel like nothing was actually happening with the music.You'd start to wonder if the better songs on the album were the result of some sort of fluke, before another strong track would come on and remind you why the album is good.
Like I said though, they are talented musicians and despite the way the album seems to draw on in places, it still opens strongly with a lot of catchy, in your face tracks like Forever, Mountain and Static Information. Even though the album does draw on, if you nitpick a few tracks from Nowhere Forever and give those a listen then they'll make a good addition to any indie rock enthusiast's playlist.
Listen to the whole thing here: http://loveofdiagrams.bandcamp.com/album/nowhere-forever
Reccomended for: Lovers of Sonic Youth, Bloc Party, The Ex.
Side note - 2013 was scheduled to hold a new release from Love of Diagrams with Steve Albini doing the production work. While it's unlikely we'll see the release until 2014, Albini has produced albums for smaller bands who have then sky-rocketed to fame and critical acclaim. Three examples being The Pixies first album, Cloud Nothing's 'Attack on Memory' from last year, and McLusky's quintiesstial rock album 'Mcklusky Do Dallas'. As a band, Love of Diagrams shows as much potential as any of these three and if Albini's track record is anything to go by, their next album *will* be a masterpiece... assuming it gets released. Watch this space, guys.
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