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Dissolution

The Pineapple Thief

If Muse or Radiohead or Steven Wilson can become stars in the Age of Crumbling Musicality, is it to late for The Pineapple Thief? I've considered this British band, under the guise of songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Bruce Soord, one of the greatest acts in the world for years now. But they can't afford to tour the U.S., if that tells us anything. I take solace in "Dissolution," the brand-new album. Their sound has the permanence of an aural sea — always lovely and a bit frightening to behold; always shifting in power and subtleties; and utterly transfixing. On "Dissolution," Soord ponders the titular breakdown of human relationships through social media and its subsequent and increasing self-absorption. This is a brooding, shifting, thoughtful, spooky and always gorgeously melodic recording. It's stunning, really.