Dirty Three

In 1996, Dirty Three made a huge impact on the music world with their third album, Horse Stories. Their first, Sad and Dangerous has since dropped off the map, and their second, self-titled album is well worth a listen, but it was Horse Stories that really broke the bank, combining the plaintive wail of Warren Ellis's violin with the sparse drum attack of Jim White and the atmospheric twang of Mick Turner's guitar. It spoke, musically, of emotion and heartbreak rarely heard, certainly not in such a raw form, and in performance the material was nothing short of miraculous. At the time, lots of people wondered where they go next, if the inherent limitations of the line-up might not hinder forward progress. Rubbish, the band responded, but sadly, it seems like that prophecy was more true than we'd like. While Turner has put out a few solo EPs and albums, each better than the last, and both Ellis and White have shopped their talents around with other groups, as Dirty Three they seem to be going through the motions. Whatever You Love, You Are is a perfectly nice journey through the land of Dirty Three, but it will have you wondering why all this seems so familiar, as if we've seen and heard it all before.