The Flaming TsunamisThis sextet (now quintet) comes courtesy of New Haven, CT and have been swinging since the turn of the millennium. This is their fourth full length album, all of which have been released by the band themselves, two of them on their own label, Kill Normal Records. I must say, they were a welcome change of pace for my ears. They play an eclectic experimental sound that has a plethora of influences that culminates into a sound all their own. At any given time you will encounter some foot tapping ska, pit inducing metal breaks, jazzy horns and walking bass lines, punk ferocity and hardcore shouts. But this is far from a Folly clone or anything in that vein and not even remotely close to sounding like Catch 22, so don't even bother trying to pigeonhole these guys.
The problem with bands that like to throw in as much random influences as humanly possible is how disjointed the songs can become and sound more like a compilation album, than cohesive, flowing full length. But these guys manage to keep the transitions smooth and the songs seem to melt into one another. On the plus side of having an array of sounds at your disposal is keeping the listener interested and intrigued, and for the most these guys do that. Through the 12 tracks the band keeps things interesting by not relying on a set formula. Some songs start off with a crushing breakdown whereas others with a melodic twist or something else completely random. Most of the songs range between the 3 and 4 minute area with the last two both hitting over 6 minutes with the album totaling 46:21.
These guys know how to be serious, funny and both at the same time. As with the music, these guys are pretty diverse in their lyrics. At any given time the band speaks out against the evil pharmaceutical companies overloading the market with unnecessary drugs, raping the earth and it's people, eating girlfriends, dead body disposal, robbing the red cross, fighting back against the government, a delectably hilarious track about Satan standing trail where Satan says it is the people of the Earth that have decided their fates, not he, and least but not last deceiving media outlets. All in all, killer shit that put a smile to my face.
The album was recorded at a studio I am unfamiliar with, The Principals Office in the bands hometown. It was mastered by the well known Alan Douches over at West West Side Music though. Both parties did an amazing job. The guitars have a good thick tone. The bass tone really jumped out at me, when it's time for the horn section and the bass to shine it really shines. Plenty of low end for the breakdowns and a nice warm tone for the walking bass lines, ska and reggae lines as well. And the funk tone in World Of Chaos sounded awesome. The vocals were solid, no problems. The drums I thought could've been a tad more fluid and less distant in the mix. The bass drum sounded way too clicky for my tastes. The horns sounded fantastic as well. The little sound clips added at the end of songs were nice little touches too.
This record has one hell of a layout. It was printed on a black matte stock paper (For some reason I love the smell of the paper when you first pop open the case) and includes a husky booklet. The concept revolves around how pharmaceutical companies profit off of diagnosing everyone with "false" disorders like ADD. As you can see on the cover, there is a slanted pill bottle with the album title. On the exposed tray part it has the band name in orange. The back cover has rows of pill bottles that are used to display the song titles. I really liked how they used an almost Night Of The Living Dead theme with black and white pictures to tie in with each song inside the meaty booklet. Sheer quality.
Rating: 4.5/5
Sections Worthy of Replay: Bird Watching and Vice Versa and Fear Everything
Synopsis: I highly recommend this to anyone rapid fan of music who is looking for something new. If you like heaviness with unique influences this is for you. One of my favorite layouts too. Off subject but the first bass riff in Shit Piss Die reminded me of a jazzed of Gadget theme, which is a good thing of course. Unfortunately, the band has lost it's trombone player, so if you just happen to be a proficient player, check out the band's myspace for info (http://www.myspace.com/theflamingtsunamis)