The Drones - Wait Long By The River And The Bodies Of Your Enemies Will Float By (2005)

I recently watched Martin Scorcese’s excellent Bob Dylan documentary, “No Direction Home,” in which, a young Dylan tells a press conference that he makes music, not because he wants to, but because he has to. On their latest album, Wait Long By The River And The Bodies Of Your Enemies Will Float By, The Drones sound like a band that make music not because they want to, but because - like Dylan - they have to. There is something primal locked inside them, urgent tearing and screaming to escape, and the only way they can release it, is through their music. With two guitars, bass, drums, and front man Gareth Liddiard’s vocals, The Drones make music that sounds saturated in blood, sweat and booze. Shark Fin Blues, the album’s scorching opening track, tells the story of a ship, sinking into shark infested waters. The narrator of the story, sinking with the ship, ready to accept his grisly fate. The guitars on this track sound more like they are being fought than played. The vocals, desperate. Liddiard’s ability to alternate between quiet rumination to wild howling, are never better exemplified. Having been compared to other like-minded Australians like Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, The Drones are not afraid to explore the darker regions of the human psyche. Another standout track, is the haunting Locust, which begins with the quiet tinkling of a piano, and ends in a wash of guitar distortion and feedback. In between, the song’s narrator tells of a small Australian town, opening proceedings with the lyric “Georgie, I can’t stop drinking / Seems like everytime I do, I can’t stop thinking.” A town with a dark past, where racism, suicide and alcoholism run through the streets like a river. Wait Long By The River And The Bodies Of Your Enemies Will Float By, is a dark, ominous listen, and along with your favourite bottle of whisky, is a perfect companion for those days when life itself is dark and ominous.

Check Out: www.thedrones.com.au