UNLIVE FROM A DEAD CITY

A very good but long album!

Tin Scribble is a progressive rock project from the United States which is back with a new album after six years, when they released "Children of Saturn" in 2005. Since then they gained good reputation due to their great blend of heavy, soft and experimental sound that sums up an eclectic style. Now, in this 2011 they returned with "Unlive From A Dead City", a 76-minute album divided in fourteen compositions in which we can appreciate that mixture of style, moods, rhythms and sounds.

The album opens with "Schizophonia" which is a short introductory track with a soft piano playing all along, creating a nice atmosphere. "Abandon" makes a sudden change and contrasts with that previous tranquility. Here a bombastic guitar riff begins along with a keyboard background and drums, making a neo-prog sound. Later vocals join and complement the music. This song is pretty nice, it is good and strong, like Pavlov´s Dog meets Satellite, what a combination.

"Corinnia" is another short track. This time it has a beautiful string sound that creates a peaceful and tranquilizing sound. This song leads to "Without" which once again starts like an explosion, with a guitar riff and a heavier sound. During the song we can appreciate some changes in style and mood, going from heavy to soft moments; from storm to calm. I like a lot the voice of the singer, it reaches high tones and has a great colour that help spicing the music.

"Vox Popili Vox Dei" starts with some electronic noise as background while the voice appears. Half a minute later the song explodes once again with a heavier sound and (yeah, once again) several inner changes can be appreciated. Here I like a lot the bass lines, and of course the guitar riffs. I like the dynamism that this band puts in their music, it is in constant movement, so we the listeners too. "Wake" is a soft and charming track like may sound like a ballad or even a lullaby. It is a moment of relaxation and calm, in spite its sound increases and becomes more emotional.

"Separate Silence" starts with acoustic guitar but after a few seconds electric join and produce a heavier feeling. There is a nice intercalation between heavier and softer moments, strong changes that are well structured and do not harm the music at all. The guitar riff is excellent once again, so the music in general is. "Invisible Sun" is (as you guessed) a The Police cover, which was a nice surprise to me because I really like The Police, and in my opinion Tin Scribble did a wonderful cover, with great keyboards creating a tense sound, the vocals are pretty good and make a truly enjoyable track.

"Breakable" has a mid-tempo rhythm and some kind of oriental flavor made by strings. What I really enjoy in this album is that capacity of creating different compositions that overpass the boundaries of a simple style, it is nice to hear a diversity of elements during the whole record, which is very rich in sounds and textures. This track is a clear example of that. "Guitaristic at Ease" has (as the name suggest) a guitar oriented sound, with a flamenco acoustic guitar that produces a wonderful sound that let us know the skills of the guitar player. I really like this track, and once again, that mixture of rhythms and sounds in one single album.

"Bleak" starts all of a sudden with a powerful sound. It is like a cardiac moment because you are still listening to the previous acoustic guitar track and then the band surprises you with this new one, it does not let you even breath and rest. Now you are immerse in a new trip, with a heavy rock and even psychedelic track with a feast of emotions and guitar riffs, the drums are also excellent here.

The bass lines become addictive in "For a While" which happens to be also the longest track of the album. This is a pretty good and challenging composition where guitars play a wonderful role, both as rhythm and as lead. Here as you can imagine by the length you will find several passages and changes in mood, time and tempo. There are some spacey effects and atmosphere complemented by a charming voice. The eclecticism of the band is once again reflected in a single track, a song that shall be one of their highlights.

"Throwing Glances" is another long song that shows off the band's compositional skills. The soundscapes created are great, and the use of both acoustic and electric guitar playing with several elements make a pretty rich and strong fort. The album finishes with "Wake", an excellent track that is full of nuances and beautiful colors. The acoustic guitars are great and there is a wonderful string sound of cello and violin which I am not sure was actually made by keyboards, or by guest musicians. The song is emotional, the music just flows and give us a wonderful ending.

I liked this album a lot, but that happened after several listens, because first it was difficult because it is a long album, not really easy to dig at first. However, it is excellently elaborated and with a lot to offer. My final grade will be 4 stars.

Enjoy it!

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