Toward the Low Sun
Jump-started by the bristling guitar loop of “Furnace Skies,” 2012’s *Toward the Low Sun* announces the Dirty Three’s return with immediate oomph after a seven-year break between albums. As much as they capitalize on that clamorous introduction, Australia’s widely traveled instrumental trio still stretch way out for their signature fiddle-swept vistas. But they also display close-quarters tenderness on “Rain Song,” as if they were huddled next to a nursery and trying not to stir a sleeping baby.
Sticking us with something that won't go away, the Dirty Three are back. It's been awhile, but that just means that the music here is heavy with seven years in the (rumpled, hair-mottled) life of the Dirty Three. Once again, they're exploring spaces that immediately crumble and give way to more spaces to explore, which lends itself to thrilling and deeply touching music from the filthy trifecta. If this doesn't put them on the top of the charts, then nothing will!
After a seven-year absence, the Australian minimal violin/guitar/drum trio of Warren Ellis, Mick Turner, and Jim White unlearn everything they've known before in an attempt to start anew.
Australian instrumental trio Dirty Three’s first full-length in seven years, Toward The Low Sun begins with a dizzying, aggressive rampage of frenetic improv and brawny rock heft bizarrely infused with country twang. If the trio were a beast, it would be a rabid one, but rarely has a creature so enraged and rugged…
Over the Dirty Three’s career, a tension has become increasingly apparent: between the narcotic rapture of their live performances, and the sense of song-based narrative that drives the records. This was particularly evident on 2007’s Cinder, and like that record, Toward the Low Sun embellishes its core of violin, guitar and drums with additional instrumentation, including organ and piano. Yet its tone reflects a determination, as Warren Ellis has explained, to return to a more 'improvised and instinctive' sound.
Those unfamiliar with the work of the Australian violin/guitar/drum trio could be forgiven for misguided perceptions of what such a gathering might generate.
The musicians that make up Dirty Three have been gloriously warping their art for almost twenty years.
Dirty Three 'Toward The Low Sun' album review on Northern Transmissions.
The first album in six years from Nick Cave-affiliated post-rockers Dirty Three is a sophisticated, evocative treat, writes <strong>Tom Hughes</strong>
Dirty Three - Toward The Low Sun review: Not only do we get another Dirty Three album after a seven year drought, but we are treated to one of the most incredible recordings of their career.