A band that categorises itself as post-metal and pre-death must be worth a listen and so it was with some curiosity, that the play button was pressed upon “Tunguskan by Minneapolis based band TRITA.
So, do you get what you might expect from a band with such a grandiose self-categorisation? Perhaps you do and perhaps you get something more for, despite the muscular metal stylisations that songs like “Tunguskan” and “Tin Ear” undoubtedly possess, there is a notable degree of melodic subtlety and dramatic purpose that gives a pointer to the band’s true musical direction.
When experienced sequentially, these five songs rumble like a Ford V8 after a particularly good tune up and with the smooth idle of “The Isolationist” merely setting the stage for the kind of full on sonic assault that only a decatted exhaust can sustain. That said,” The Color of Hope” shows that the band can stretch the genre confines further than a loud roar by turning things in the direction of a melodic cruise with enough in the way of offbeat intent to make the journey interesting.
TRITA might well be loud. Let’s face it, they are loud, but they aren’t content to just join the dots in the puzzle that might make a worthy melodic metal band. Instead, they put a welcome dramatic spin on the proceedings and, in the process, successfully stamp some of their own personality on their music.
While TRITA don’t make my kind of music, I can always appreciate a band who can do more than hide behind the coat tails of their predecessors and TRITA do just that.
Best song? The dramatic “The Last Floating Stage”.
The verdict? Solid as a very big rock.
Available from Bandcamp.