Review Summary: ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead have done a step forward into a new direction by recording an epic, cleverly structured album. So Divided is quite different from their earlier albums and therefore pulled to pieces by many die-hard fans of th
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead are one of those bands that evolve from album to album. They have constantly been changing their sound with the last three outputs and "So Divided" is one step further down the road they have chosen. I can't talk about the two earliest albums, because I've never listened to them but from all I've read about them, they also seem to fit in that scheme.
"Source, Tags & Codes" has been raw, energetic and aggressive without compromises. The music blasted the listener pretty much away and left him with a splitting headache. It was no wonder that the album had soon become a modern classic. "Worlds Apart", the next output, was somehow better thought-out, the structures became more complex and orchestra arrangements were used. Post Punk was replaced by Art Rock. The effect was that the sale numbers went down heavily. But instead of returning to safe territory, Trail of Dead take even another step away from "Source, Tags & Codes" with this album. The similarities to the band they once were are no longer clearly visible at all.
Originally founded in 1997, Trail of Dead have built up quite a big fan base over the years. But the way Trail of Dead are heading now will surely offend many of their die-hard fans ... but folks, this is progression! For me the step they have chosen is one forward: this album is without doubt a brave one.
"So Divided" doesn't reach the level of "Source, Tags & Codes" or "Worlds Apart", but that would be an almost impossible task anyway. Like it’s predecessors this is not simply a collection of great songs, but really works as a whole. Originally started as a little EP project, it has turned into something big and epic. The songs are strong enough to stay at there own, but they are more effective in the context of the album. The tone of it is still a depressive one, but the aggression has calmed down and given way for a more apathetic and even sadder view of the world, without being less epic.
The first impression of "So Divided" is that it is more stripped down to the core. At first the songs seem to be more simply arranged, with fewer layers. But after a few listens (and a few listens are always obligatory to fully “get” a Trail of Dead album), this proves wrong: "So Divided" is just not as obtrusive as earlier Trail of Dead albums, but the band is nevertheless using its full potential. The arrangements are so rich that it never becomes boring - every time you listen to this album, you will find something you haven't heard before. The old anger and angst is still there, not on the surface but lurking under careful arrangements. And this restructuring was what turned many fans off.
The music is still guitar-oriented and Kevin Allen rips off some really cool riffs. Of course the drums are shining again on this album (like they do on every Trail of Dead album I own). Jason Reece's drumming is the centre of the music, on which everything else develops and it is what keeps the music together. But there are some important innovations: new instruments are integrated in the sound and the orchestra is not included every now and then, but on almost every song, which makes the album seem even more epic than “Worlds Apart”. Most obvious is the change in the vocals. There is no more screaming and pressing, but more high pitched and clearer vocals, which for some reason seemed as a big let down to many fans, but I don’t see something bad in Conrad Keely’s voice.
The lyrics are similar to the previous albums: with some wonderful lines every now and then they often don't have any real meaning but describe more an overall state of depression and sadness:
”It's not that I don't care / It's not that I don't love you / It's just that I am here / To put you out of your misery”
So let’s move on to the songs:
Once again Trail of Dead start an album with an
Intro: A Song of Fire and Wine. A faint church bell rings in the album an then it starts off with the muffled sounds of a crowd over which the band begins to play, soft and slow at first. The music gets more and more intense until it reaches its climax and the heavy guitars of
Stand in Silence break free like a monster and the crowd screams in panic and fear.
Stand in Silence is the most typical Trail of Dead song on "So Divided": there are heavy guitars, Conrad Keely's screaming voice and wonderful, energetic drumming. But the best part is the bridge, which reprises the intro and builds into Trail of Dead's best orchestral arrangement to date. The second "traditional" Trail of Dead-song is the title track
So Divided - although that one is more complex than usual with lots of changes throughout the song.
But there are also songs that clearly show how much the band has developed.
Wasted State of Mind is the first one: Keely's vocals are much more melody oriented than anything Trail of Dead have done before and the way they end the song with a concertina is surely strange - but fits surprisingly well. After this more upbeat track,
Naked Sun seems somehow dragging in the beginning, one guitar riff is repeated for about four minutes until the song builds up momentum, and when the orchestra enters at the end the slow start is completely forgotten.
Gold Heart Mountain Top Queen, a Guided by Voices cover, is the softest Trail of Dead song to date. The guitars are acoustic and a piano takes the lead. I don't know the original record, but I doubt that it can have more emotion and feeling than Trail of Dead's version.
Life is also a surprise, maybe the most epic Trail of Dead song to date, with great piano work and a beautiful, soft fade-out including the wonderful voice of a female singer called Lily Courtney - which is one of the best moments on the album.
The biggest shock for the die-hard fans will surely be
Eight Days of Hell, an upbeat Beach Boys-like little pop song, fooling around with vocal harmonies and all that stuff. But though it seems happy at first, the lyrics tell another story:
”The torture of eight days straight / Without sight of your face is so frightening / Hoping to make it straight / Or find signs of a bite that won't fade like poison”.
My personal favorite of the album is
Witch's Web, one of the most beautiful songs, Trail of Dead have ever done, not at least because of the additional vocals of Amanda Palmer from the Dresden Dolls. An acoustic guitar dominates, but it is accompanied by a whole load of instruments. It also has the most beautiful lyrics of the album:
"You're a name, on a phonelist I've crossed of". The end will again be more like-able for older fans of the band. After some psychedelic sound effects, the album closes pretty well with the epic
Sunken Dreams - even darker and more depressive than everything we've heard before on this record:
"I remember dessert places / Shadowless and cold"
To conclude it: ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead have entered territory, that is completely new for them and they have done a good job. Don't expect another "Source, Tags & Codes", but also don't let the bad ratings from disappointed fan-boys fool you. This album may not be among Trail of Dead’s best ones, but it is a step forward into a new direction and achieves a good
4/5 rating.
