Limited to a single print run of 2,000, you'll want to get your hands on it quickly if you're an existing fan of the band. If not, Yes Maybe No isn't the best introduction to a group that is as capable of producing sheer musical perfection as it is of confounding and frustrating with the pedestrian malaise found dotted sparingly through their back catalogue.

Compared to the brilliance of the full-length Mapping Your Dreams, the newest EP sounds rushed; full of promising nuggets of music but failing to develop them into a mature, coherant package. This is surprising given the time limitations of the EP format, but for whatever reason the EP seems to amble with no real direction or purpose.

The building blocks are there: a conscious shift away from the dark despair of 2007's Radio Swan Is Down; a stripped-back, simpler compositional structure; a mostly reduced role for samples and effects (apart from the ubiquitous post-rock feedback). But where in the past Laura have crafted their disperate and conflicting influences into a well-rounded whole with depth and texture, Yes Maybe No crashes down under its own weight, proving that taking a risk can reap incredible reward or bring terrible loss.

In their favour, Laura have tried to keep their music a moving target, defying the temptation to stay rooted in the tried-and-true methods of their past, and for that they deserve kudos. This EP, though, could go either way: existing fans may find the simpler, less verbose melodic structure a welcome change, while others may pine for the lush, full texture of times gone by.

The singular exception to this is "Bobik Is In Amerika", the introductory track. Frenetic, dark, complex and layered, it scuttles through its four minutes at a pace similar to most of Mapping Your Dreams, and with a healthy dose of the aforementioned digital effects.

But for the most part, Yes Maybe No is relatively laid back and cello-heavy. Recurring guitar motifs rise above thunderous drumming, sprinkled with strings, wind and other orchestral sounds. It's textbook post-rock, but Laura are better than textbook.

On the plus side, gone is the abrupt gear-shifting that has become a staple of the more bombastic, heavier side of current post-rock. The music no longer turns on a 10 cent piece from one style to another, instead transitioning far more fluidly. This is most evident in the three sequencially-numbered "Z.I.B." ("Substitute For Bobik") tracks, bridging passages situated between the three main tracks, the longest a mere two minutes.

Culled from an extended improvisation session during the album's recording, they breathe a little life into an otherwise mostly clinical record, serving to tie together the EP's feature songs.

For Laura fans, Yes Maybe No is a valuable addition to the canon, but to truly appreciate Laura I would suggest that new listeners start with the live album (re) capitulate, a triumph of modern Australian music, or Mapping Your Dreams.

By no means a bad record, Yes Maybe No suffers from being "the EP Laura released after (re) capitulate", but if there's one thing you can be sure of, it's that their next visit to the well will bring something entirely different, and in all likelihood, brilliant.

Released on U.S. label Elevation Recordings, Yes Maybe No is limited to 2,000 copies available through www.elevationrecordings.net and at Laura shows. They play their first show in Australia since returning from Japan at Melbourne's East Brunswick Club on Friday, September 19th before heading to Brisbane's Globe Theatre on Saturday the 20th. They then appear on the Badlands Festival in Sydney with Cog, Kisschasy, Mammal and Dead Letter Circus among others on Sunday the 21st.