Review: The Laurels - Mesozoic

By Beth Keating.

The Laurels are one of those bands you wait for, patiently, devotedly, passionately. It feels excellent to hold their recently released e.p., Mesozoic, in my hands. For the last three and a half years, I’ve lived on long-ago recorded demos downloaded from the band’s myspace page; early tracks featured on the eponymous Sydney hey-day neo-psych compilation, Burn Your Fingers on the Sun; and sporadic mastered mp3s picked up here and there.

Mesozoic showcases the Laurels in their most current incarnation, and in so doing, demonstrates with full force how much they’ve has grown over the last four years. If you already know the band, you’ll likely be familiar with most of the material on the e.p. – of the six tracks featured on Mesozoic, the majority have existed in various forms of development for some time.

‘Black Cathedral’ is a brilliant introduction to the e.p. The track itself has changed substantially from it’s previous incarnation as part of the Shoegaze Demo a few years ago: it’s more confident, gutsier, harder – more self-assured. ‘Black Cathedral’ has always been hypnotic, but here it goes beyond bended, translucent shoegaze and blasts forward like a manifesto – an aural articulation of strength and focus.

Shoegaze seeps through all six tracks of Mesozoic, but the release offers glimpses of how the Laurels are not falling victim to a remarkably limited genre. Instead, they’re redefining it – participating in a kind of musical revisionism, blurring the lines between different facets of psychedelia and inserting their own idiosyncratic perspective. ‘Merry Go Round’ mixes Ride’s propelling, pent-up and exuberant energy with Storm in Heaven like vocals. Kate Wilson’s drumming stands out most on this track, guiding it, powering it, overriding it with a wonderfully primal energy. It represents one of my favourite things about the Laurels: total cohesion. The music isn’t just about the guitars, or the effects, the vocals or the band’s influences – the Laurels are the sum of their parts, completely democratic in creating a rich, dissonant product.

Mesozoic is a strong offering – anyone who has been following the band would expect nothing less. As a long-term fan of the Laurels, it’s fascinating and rewarding to actively watch and hear the band develop – something that this e.p. captures really well. What I’d ultimately like to see is an album – a recording with a distinct purpose and direction. It would be hard to fault any of the tracks featured on Mesozoic, but their strength exists independently rather than as a whole. The Laurels continue to get better and better; I’d like to see them produce the great Australian album I know they are capable of. It’d be worth the wait.