Terrorbird

Some nine years after having called it a day, Athens GA's Masters of the Hemisphere reconvene to slap a little extra polish on their indiepop silverware.

Forming in 1996, Masters of the Hemisphere released several albums, EPs and singles before disbanding in 2002. Having remained close friends over the years (and sharing the stage in various bands including Still Flyin' and Je Suis France), the quartet's reunion is less a tiresome exhumation than a happy embracing of the inevitable.

Maybe These Are the Breaks, the watershed new album finds messrs Rawls, Mead, Finch and Griggs in supreme form, building on their strong back catalogue of alluring pop and ambitious conceptual outings, while expanding their sonic landscapes considerably. Recorded in Athens by Ken Henslee and mixed in Gothenburg, Sweden by Wyatt Cusick (The Aislers Set, Trackstar, Love is All), the new album hits on some typically out-there themes and is set to rekindle old Masters flames and ignite new ones amongst a young generation of indiepop fans.

With each member drawing on their myriad influences and contributing to the writing, the Masters sound is as hard to pigeonhole as ever; amongst the new album's confines you'll hear strapping jangle-pop collide with walls of synths, while gorgeous acoustic ballads slow-dance with 80s production, making for a diverse and rewarding listen. Indeed, 'Half a Fool' (the album's quasi-title track) is an unabashed country-folk ditty, complete with steel guitars and tear jerkin' sentiment. Throughout though, big melodies are the common thread and Maybe These Are the Breaks is a welcome return from a great pop group.