The Boat People 
Dear Darkly 
(Independent)

Over three decades ago, a pair of aspiring Brisbane musicians set down two rules that they’d follow throughout their long partnership: they were to equally share the amount of songs that appeared on each album between themselves, and they’d never do anything without the other’s permission. That pair was Robert Forster and Grant McLennan, who founded seminal pop band The Go-Betweens in 1978. In 2010, whether conscious or not, another pair of Brisbane pop writers – James O’Brien and Robin Waters – have tapped into this same ethos for their band The Boat People’s third album, Dear Darkly. Like every Go-Betweens album, they touch upon romance and melancholy in equal measure. And like every Go-Betweens album, Dear Darkly consistently errs on the side of greatness.

Augmented by guitarist Charles Dugan and drummer Tony Garrett, the duo each author six songs on an album that exhibits the best work of their decade-long career. Though their last LP, 2008’s Chandeliers, was subject to a three-year gestation process, they’ve opted to work faster this time around. The result is their most eclectic collection to date.

In ‘Soporific’, Dugan’s blissful hook and Waters’ lackadaisical voice imparts a warmth that breeds familiarity, even when the song takes an unexpected right-turn into programmed electronica. Likewise first single ‘Echo Stick Guitars’, a facetious, synth-heavy romp positioned mere inches from cheese-ball territory feels like a guilty pleasure. However, it’s four tracks in that O’Brien’s ‘Antidote’ exhibits the first - and best - example of the lyrical romance that underpins Dear Darkly (“So hold your head high / ‘Cause you’re everything I need / You’re everything to escape myself / You’re the antidote to an ugly world”). Waters and O’Brien have never shied away from expressing love and devotion, and ‘Antidote’ stands as one of their finest works yet.

‘Too Much In My Mind’ is a clever upbeat number that explores the dangers of navel-gazing (“Sometimes I wish my body was something that I didn’t need / It’s just a vessel for my brain, just another mouth to feed”). ‘Hidden Busses’ - Waters’ pretty acoustic number - sounds like it’s the product of a sleepless, lovesick delirium (“Baby tell me what’s the use / If it’s not gonna be for you?”). ‘Pornography’ laments returning home only to find yourself unable to relate your experiences (“Holiday photography / Is as subtle as pornography”), while album closer ‘You Are Adored’ - anchored to O’Brien’s swinging bassline - stretches past six minutes of cascading open chords and sung melodies.

The best pop music conveys universally-felt emotions without overcomplicating matters; with Dear Darkly, The Boat People position themselves as nothing less than pop authorities.

Andrew McMillen