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Trail of Dead Release Another Solid Contender

The Century of Self almost lives up to the sheer epic-ness of the band's name.

...And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead

The Century of Self

Released on Feb 17, 2009

By virtue of their name alone, ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead is immediately intimidating.  Whether intentionally or not, the Austin-born, Brooklyn-based prog-punk rockers imply that theirs is a musical onslaught capable of exploding eardrums and wreaking havoc upon unwitting listeners. 

Perhaps as a result of the aura of intimidation that seemingly surrounds the band, I stayed far away until the album artwork of 2005’s Worlds Apart pulled me in.  With a name like Trail of Dead and an album cover depicting medieval murder and mayhem, I was expecting metal.  So I was surprised when Worlds Apart opened with panicked piano and choral chants and continued with rambunctious riffs and songs featuring multiple movements.  I thoroughly enjoyed the theatrical qualities of the art-punk album but was surprised to see that Pitchfork panned it while pointing to 2002’s Source Tags & Codes as “one of indie rock's truly epic albums.” So it’s embarrassing to admit that I picked up Source Tags & Codes from my library but to this day haven’t gotten around to listening to it. 

Having never heard Source Tags & Codes, perhaps I’m ill-equipped to review Trail of Dead’s new album, The Century of Self, the band’s first release since departing Interscope Records.  But what I can say is that Trail of Dead is seemingly in regular form here.  “Giants Causeway” is the instrumental incantation to an album driven by raging guitars and drums and punctuated by piano.  The full-throated screams of “Far Pavilions” and the deluge of drum rolls in “Isis Unveiled” establish a fast-paced punk vibe until the latter is broken down into a lurching shout-along about tasting blood and eating flesh.  “Halcyon Days” is one of the more memorable tracks from the album, with the vocal delivery on the line “Let the years roll in” melodic and pleasing. 

“Bells of Creation” is easily the best song on the album.  It’s ironic, too, because the song’s arrangement is simple––even sparse––in comparison to the songs that surround it.  With a few notes plucked on a piano and an invigorating 1-2 guitar punch, the verse achieves a musicality that is perhaps unrivaled even on the most produced parts of the album.  The song builds and builds before it is broken down and disappears.  “Fields of Coal” is another gem, with its fast-spoken vocals, busy drumbeat and brothers-in-arms sing-along in the chorus. 

“Inland Sea” and “Luna Park” are the album’s relatively tame tracks, but each has its own beauty.  In “Inland Sea,” it’s the hypnotic piano plucks that eventually build into a guitar riff.  The acoustic guitar, piano and vocal trio of “Luna Park” sounds more Wilco than it does Trail of Dead, but as it happens, it’s a welcome respite from the band’s otherwise eardrum-shattering sound.  The album ends with “Insatiable, Pt. 1,” the awful “Ascending,” the instrumental “An August Theme” and “Insatiable, Pt. 2.” Both movements of “Insatiable” are Trail of Dead in classic form, with a European-sounding waltz playing out on the piano and then building up to a sing-along about a monster on a summit.

Having heard Worlds Apart and The Century of Self, I can say that The Century of Self isn’t a return to form for Sources Tags & Codes-era Trail of Dead.  If Worlds Apart was panned in comparison to Source Tags & Codes, I don’t hear much difference in between Worlds Apart and The Century of Self that would lead me to believe that the latter somehow achieves the same epic album designation awarded to Source Tags & Codes.  In between now and the next Trail of Dead album, I’ll periodically play the key tracks from The Century of Self but I promise I’ll listen to Source Tags & Codes so I can hear the band in supposedly classic form.

Posted by Ben Wadington on Mar 12, 2009 @ 6:00 am