This is the second album from UK post-rock band Civil Service.
Civil Service offer up 46 minutes of post-rock on Dark ///. It’s an engaging and feeling-rich form of the style that Civil Service have prepared for us, and I very much like what I’ve heard on this record.
Civil Service have a talent for crafting affecting soundscapes that are well-rendered and immersive. The songwriting makes use of confident worldbuilding and cinematic flair, showcasing a band skilled at creating music with atmospheric and emotive depth.
It’s instrumental music in essence, but not quite. There are occasionally vocals, voices, and samples, spread strategically across the album. On occasion I’d prefer less of these, (such as on the otherwise stunning Black Giraffes), but this is only a minor quibble, as Civil Service largely know their art well. Guests from bands such as Overhead, the Albatross, Midas Fall, Hidden Mothers, and Blackscape add flavour in key places, most notably in the final track Turn out the /// Light.
Dark /// is a good example of a band playing a style that’s quite well-worn at this point, but managing to put a spin on it all of their own. This is less the standard delicate/fragile/ethereal version of post-rock that I confess I was expecting, (although there are certainly elements of these attributes here), and instead something better formulated. Dark /// is, fittingly, a shade darker than the norm, and has more flesh and substance around its bones. There’s a real cinematic angle that Civil Service work that looks good on them, and an alternate rock influence that adds a compelling dynamic energy into the mix. All of this is wrapped in a warm and welcoming post-rock style that is absolutely of the genre, yet is also simply better than the output of the average post-rock act.
Very highly recommended.
Wonderbox Metal 