Death is the story of a bird, a bear, a rat, a rabbit and a man, beautifully spun by Melbourne’s Grand Salvo. The album is magical, reminiscent of childhood stories narrated on cassette tapes; an indie folk version of Peter and the Wolf, with more foreboding, idiosyncrasy and whimsy.

Grand Salvo employs a combination of classical worn-in instruments, recordings of rain, spoken word, the harmonies of Zoe Randell and ‘various resonant objects’ to tell his story. In using a cast of picture-book characters to tell the familiar stories of love, fear and friendship, Grand Salvo proffers these emotions as though fresh from the forest.

Despite the melancholy album title, the music is often softly curious; darkness falls in time with the narrative, and Death eventually closes its final chapter on a dual note of sadness and hope.