Mainland Divide-An Introduction to Moderation

Mutants of the Monster
2013

First of all who else just loves that record label name? That right there is straight off of the last train to weirdsville and man, if I don't just totally dig that name then I'm just lying to myself. It shows quite the bit of  creative oddness as does this instrumental recording from Little Rock, Arkansas' act Mainland Divide. OK, Mainland Divide is not really all that odd or weird I suppose. I mean here we have this charming little debut-EP where, despite what that album art-work might suggest, the landscape is beyond lush as it overflows with the sounds of  dreamy indie pop by way of a laid-back, blissfully melodic, post-rock outfit. It's only weird if you consider how splendidly the whole package works without me ever wanting to shout "Sell-outs!" or "That's a piss-poor attempt commercial pop rock" at my stereo. Not that I do that a lot anyway, but it has happened and might very well happen again down the road. Anyway, without a doubt this EP recalls so much of the dream-pop/alternative-pop of the nineties as well as some of the shoegazing movement that came out of the UK back in the eighties. While it might seem like an odd release to cover here at Heavy Metal Time Machine it's just too good to horde all to myself. Besides, our site tries to cover a little bit of everything so a band like Mainland Divide is welcome here anytime especially if they come bearing such a dreamy little gift like "An Introduction to Moderation"! Look for this one at the start of September.