That's not so much a reflection of their worth as a band as it is a downright criminal oversight on the part of most music fans.

Oceansize have followed up their second full-length album with Frames, a picturesque exploration of the quiet and the loud.

Often tagged as progressive, alternative, post-rock or indie (labels the band have rejected), one listen to their music and it becomes evident that it defies categorisation. Their genre-bending spans the great divide between the epic, delay-soaked post-rock of Sigur Ros, and the hard-edged, depressed progressive rock of Porcupine Tree, without ever actually sounding like either of those bands.

Incorporating subtle allusions to Mogwai and My Bloody Valentine along the way, it's the less-obvious "quiet" side of Oceansize's two-faced persona that most appealed to me on their previous efforts, and on Frames it finally emerges from the shadows and takes its place at centre stage. Unfortunately, the uneasy dynamics and bruised soulfulness of their soft side used so effectively in the past is not nearly as impressive this time around.

The loud - represented here by "Commemorative 9/11 T-Shirt" and "An Old Friend Of The Christie's", among others - is on par with, and occasionally exceeds, their previous release; but the quiet fails to reach the lofty standards of its predecessor, which contained two of the most lush, beautiful compositions committed to record in recent memory ("Meredith" and "Music For A Nurse").

The liquid, synth-laden "Savant" gets the closest with its soft, considered approach, but does not have the epic build-up and violent climax of "Music For A Nurse", which leaves the listener begging for more.

The instrumental "An Old Friend Of The Christie's" is an Isis-inspired flirtation with out-and-out heavy metal, and is the highlight of the album for me. "Sleeping Dogs And Dead Lions" begins with a flurry of crazy odd-time heaviness, but suffers from the misguided use of vocal effects on Mike Vennart, whose primary asset is his evocative, soulful natural singing voice. The song does, however, incorporate a jumping bass line which will have even non-bassists like myself wanting to pick up the instrument and jive along.

Bringing the album to a close, "The Frame" again demonstrates Oceansize's ability to effortlessly straddle multiple genres and still keep a consistency in the music. Finally the listener is treated to a climactic pay-off to finish off the album, with the song taking its full 10-minute running time to build the suspense before letting it all out in one final burst of energy.

It was a hard act to follow, to be sure, but I would suggest perhaps the listener should introduce themselves to Oceansize with Everyone Into Position before diving into Frames. It's easier to appreciate in context once you understand what they - as a band - are capable of.

Perhaps it's unfair to judge a band harshly based on previous glories, so I will say that Frames is by no means a bad or mediocre record, it's just that it doesn't kick quite as much arse as their last album. Oceansize are notoriously hard to find in major retail stores in Australia, but go out of your way to find some of their material somewhere, because it just might change your definition of beauty.