Saturday Afternoon with Laura
Though the noodled notes on “Cardboard Cutout Robot Victim Hero Children” could just as easily point to U2 or Thirteenth Step-era A Perfect Circle as to Red Sparowes, in the context of Laura‘s soundscape-ready post-rock, I’d gear it far toward the latter. The Australian six-piece doesn’t shy away from throwing in a heavy riff or thick bassline, but about half of the Yes Maybe No EP on Elevation Recordings — limited to 2,000 CD copies — is dedicated solely toward ambience. Not a problem if you don’t mind your post-rock with emphasis on the former rather than the latter.
There are three “songs” on Yes Maybe No, and an accompanying three shorter atmospheric pieces, “Z.I.B. 1,” “Z.I.B. 2” and – wait for it – “Z.I.B. 3.” As parts two and three of this cryptic trilogy are right next to each other, one leading from “Cardboard Cutout Robot Victim Hero Children” into the next which immediately precedes 14-minute feedback opus closer “Another One for the Humans,” they could have easily been put together as one track and I suspect it’s purely for reasons of artistic license that they weren’t. If it’s to be the three “Z.I.B.” tracks vs. the other two and opening cut “Bobik is in America,” then fine; it all flows together anyway.
Laura have opened tours in their native land for the likes of Isis and Cult of Luna, but like a lot of the Australian creative community, they’re largely limited to that geographic locale. With two studio full-lengths under their belt and another EP released back in 2002, there is probably a better starting point in the Laura discography for curious Americans looking to expand their horizons, but Yes Maybe No, with its synth-based stutter beginning and grandiose, cello-infused finish leaves a pleasant enough impression that, even if it feels overly intellectual and perhaps too self-involved, sticks with the listener nonetheless.
Because it’s instrumental in its entirety and often quiet, Yes Maybe No is an easy candidate for sonic wallpaper, emanating from an expensive sound system in the background of a high-priced fashion boutique or bar disguised as a cocktail lounge. In any case, I’m not going to hold the people who listen against the band, but the sense I get from this EP is that the straightforward riff-rock seekers won’t find much to latch onto, whereas those who like their music with room for hyper-analysis should find plenty to muse on with Laura. Opine away.
