Ever since Charalambides went from a trio to a duo, I felt the group lost a bit of it's magic. The music on A Vintage Burden remains quite haunting, but in a very different way. Gone are the slow build ups and weird vocal exercises. Same goes for the struggling guitar notes which sounded like seeds trying to pierce their shell and dig through the dirt in search of the Sun. Now the duo create carefully crafted songs rooted in their melancholic folk (much like some of their earliest material without the tendencies towards noise). It's incredibly beautiful, I dare anyone to not become light-headed while listening to Spring (which somewhat reminds me of Sonic Youth's Little Drummer Girl). The epic Black Bed Blues is another highlight, but I find that the clean production and structured song forms work against the group's originality. Still, this group has come a long way and deserves the utmost of respect no matter what stylistic choices they make.