For more than a decade, they had uneasily straddled the line between delivering radio-friendly hooks while maintaining their garage punk, noise-driven ethos.

It was a delicate balance they were unable to consistently handle, swinging too far in either direction for both label and dedicated fans.

But freed of external business constraints, the four-piece are now in the most prodigious period of their career, making short films, running music workshops and releasing experimental noise albums.

Singer-guitarist Adalita Srsen, has described their sixth full-length record, Girl, as being like a soundtrack.

It certainly could be the musical accompaniment to Magic Dirt's own career - running the gamut of melodious, glam pop, hard garage rock, shoegaze, wall of noise cuts and brilliant guitar squalls.

It also contains several gems, a couple of misfires and others that frustrate you by not realising their potential.

Much like the band, really.

Opener Get Ready To Die, packing punchy, dueling guitars and drum fills, is a two-minute garage burst that is all grrrl anthem.

It kickstarts a trio of direct, grim-covered rock-pop tracks, that wear the formula thin by the time lead single Romy clocks in.

Things start to get more expansive on the rhythmic, menacingly moody Six Feet Under, before slowing down on the down-tuned, Velvety-drone of Always, one of the album's best cuts.

White Boy, said to be a towering live favourite, has the soft-loud grunge dynamics and the catchy refrain - ``Hey little white boy, I need all the help that I can get'' - that the Dirt have perfected since the early-`90s.

Tremor is two-and-half minutes of guitar white noise that delivers a heavier slice of shoegaze, before the final - and best - two songs.

With Cupid's Bow and More the group branch out into the experimental hard rock they do best.

Girl is an indication that, far from being stuck in a post-label malaise, Magic Dirt are enjoying something of a creative renaissance.

Listeners who didn't care to find out what rockstars were doing today might again be inclined to tune in.