Album Review: Divorce - 'Drive to Goldenhammer'

Finally, it's here!

Sometimes the launch of an album is undercut slightly by the fact that the artist doing the launching has unveiled the majority of their best tunes from the record before its release. Sadly, Divorce’s ‘Drive to Goldenhammer’ feels like one of them.

Of course, every band drops, or at least aims to drop, the strongest tunes from their albums in advance – you have to create buzz by bringing out the best you have to offer.

But the problem here is, Divorce have been so effective at releasing one remarkable track after another, basically dominating the likes of Radio 6 Music in the process, that for their biggest fans (like this writer), there are few surprises left in store when diving into ‘Drive to Goldenhammer’.

That said, what this album does is create a musical manifesto laying out what Divorce are – bold, unique, the bearers of a breath of fresh air that helps to blow the music industry forward (or, you know, a slightly less strange analogy).

And having that out in the world is, in itself, a gift for us listeners. The whole package tells a complete story, with the slower, more contemplative outings like ‘Old Broken String’ complementing the big-hitters like ‘Antarctica’ and ‘Hangman’.

Now that they have this to their name, we only expect Divorce to continue their meteoric rise to the top. After all, albums make bands, and now – after countless top-quality singles, EPs and gigs – they have one of their own. And Nottingham’s music scene is all the better for it.

‘Drive to Goldenhammer’ is now available to stream and purchase at Rough Trade.