[5/5] So Divided is as good a description as any for longtime fans of ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead. For every punk purist who wants a remake of Madonna, there are art-house adventurists who love the way the band continue to push themselves. The Austin anarchists' fifth full-length targets those who don't miss the distortion-strafed early days. Continuing where 2005's audience-polarizing Worlds Apart left off, Trail Of Dead announce their epic ambitions right off the top; after starting out as a super-fuzzed rocker, "Stand In Silence" suddenly takes a hard left into symphonic paisley-pop territory. From there, it's hard to believe that daydream nation-brand guitars were once the band's preferred weapon of choice. Built around fever-sick percussion and booming baroque piano, "Wasted State Of Mind" suggests TOD might spend the occasional Sunday at the church of the Polyphonic Spree; funereal keyboards dominate a smashingly somber cover of Guided By Voices' "Gold Heart Mountain Top Queen Directory." By the time things crash to a close with the faux-gospel "Sunken Dreams," it's clear that the Trail Of Dead we once knew no longer exists. Take off your black armbands, because no matter what those on the other side of the divide say, that's an awesome thing. (INTERSCOPE) Mike Usinger
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