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Experimental, melting-pot Post-Rock. Nov 27, 2008
Utilising the same sonic instrumental sound signatures of Mogwai, Tarantua A.D. back up the sharp Post-Rock riffs with some luxurious orchestral flourishes, deft song writing and occasional tremulous vocals. It's surprising and exciting and never too oddball for it's own good; even when songs suddenly break from a riff into a melancholy bridge, it still works.
And there is a lot of that with Tarantula A.D. 'Book of Sand' is a limitless melting pot of proper Indie music (music of a time when Indie meant alternative, experimental, off-the-wall and challenging). There is so much going on, even within a single track that boredom never sets in, though it isn't as chaotic as that would seem to suggest.
Cello and violin punctuate the loudness of 'Conquest'. Second track 'Who Took Berlin' begins with a tortured squeal from the guitars that is continued and expanded on to become a blistering solo as the rock builds. 'Who Took Berlin (pt II)' is a quiet plinking piano piece before first and only vocal track proper 'Sealake' introduces some standard Mid-American Emo singing to the album.
Best track 'Empire' starts with a howl of guitars, then slips into a series of crescendoing violins until half-way through the Post-Rock riffs take the song off into another world. It ends in a wail of white noise and feedback.
In contrast to this the next two tracks are dark piano pieces both 'Prelude to the Fall' and 'The Lost Waltz' are distinctly Classical in nature. Then there is the bagpipe keyboards of 'Riverpond' and the almost-boogie and Ennio Morricone styling of 'Palo Borracho', a song of at least four other genres!
Final track 'The Fall' is nearly 10 minutes of craziness. It's all brilliant!
Fans of this kind of genre, Explosions in the Sky, ...Trail of Dead or Mogwai will fully appreciate 'Book of Sand'. New listeners to the genre may be somewhat nonplussed at the mixture of harsh dissonance and off kilter piano, of lush cello and stabbing riffs and the way many songs are distinctly split. But it all hangs together perfectly and this is as good a starting point as any if you're curious.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Amazing! Mar 29, 2006
Book of Sand is epic in scope, with styles ranging from classical to metal and charting a lot of territory in between. The songs are thoughtfully crafted with achingly beautiful violins and cellos, punishing guitars, tinkling glockenspiels, pianos dancing alone in the dark. What is perhaps most amazing to me is that Tarantula A.D. has only three members, each of whom shows a complete mastery of every instrument he plays. The use of vocals is sparse and when present functions more as an instrument. Only one song has lyrics and even they seem to be concealed by the surreal quality of their delivery.
Unlike many albums, which feature a variety of musical styles, but lack coherency, this album works brilliantly as a whole. Several of the songs surprise the listener with dramatic, yet seamless, stylistic shifts contained within the piece. Tarantula A.D. effortlessly takes the listener from prog metal to orchestral strings, from late Beatlesque moodiness to lonely piano waltzes and Spanish guitars. These songs will slam you upside the head and in your delirium send angels to tend your wounds. The overall effect is nothing short of haunting.
I was also very pleased with the way in which the final song, clocking in at over nine minutes, revisits certain motifs from songs preceding it. This strategy very effectively brings an album full circle, creating a feeling of completeness and resolution.
Needless to say, I am very excited about this band, as it has been a long time since I have felt passionately about a new album. I do feel that calling them a "band" is a disservice, as they bring a lot more to the table than most bands, and with a lot fewer members.
I hope my little review will inspire a few people to check out this Tarantula A.D.
i love this album Nov 22, 2005
Ive been obsessing over this band for a while now, and when i saw them live, they were the opener. But somehow I knew about them longer than i knew about the main act, which was rasputina for that given night. Their first full length album, book of sand, is ten songs long (or 11 depending), and if you havent listened to em long enough before, its gonna be quite awkward. cause their style is sort of like a rock opera, but not really rock in its entirity, and not opera at all. Basically, structure wise it is somewhat similar to the mars volta, but sounds nothing like them. With wierd intro's, random bursts of distorted goodness, or flowing into an intrelude which will be utterly different than the rest of the song. A good example on this album is "Who took Berlin (part one)" because there is a random violin intro, then into a long distorted piece which is oh-so-nice, then a random break to a intrelude which is completely different than the rest of the song. The basic structure of Tarantula AD. If you dont like their style at first, it will most likely grow on you. I would buy this album in a minute if i were you.
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