Dead Soul Tribe - The January Tree


Year of Release: 2004
Label: InsideOut Music
Catalog Number: IOMCD 179/SPV 085-60902
Format: CD
Total Time: 00:00:00

Picture a tree during the cold bleak days of winter. The branches are barren. Life is hibernating within the its dried up bark. The tree is literally frozen in time, waiting on the summer's warmth to bring life back to its limbs.

The album embodies the despairing days a tree spends in this coma. The music wavers between despair and lingering hope. The January Tree is an album that shows compassion to the ordeals a tree experiences throughout the harshest climate, during times of savage neglect.

The album overall is a touch less progressive and tad more metal than their previous release. Dead Soul Tribe has taken ideas from other artists and cunningly integrated them into their package. "Spiders And Flies" has riffs similar to Dream Theater's "Pull Me Under." "Sirens" has elements of Disturb's "Down With The Sickness." You'd be half-expecting a wah, ah, ah, ah. "Wings Of Faith" sounds a lot like a Rob Zombie jaunt. This may very well be the highlight of the album. "Toy Rockets" and "Just Like A Timepiece" incorporate flutes into the music much like Jethro Tull. "Why?" is the rare exception that has the spirit of Murder Of Crows. The instrumental effects in this song are quite cool.

While trees may not be human, they live and even breathe. Their roots are both a blessing and a curse. They deliver needed nutrients and hydration, but keep them immobilized and isolated. A tree gets exposed to the harsh elements of their environment with no say in the matter. They must lose their leaves and slumber in order to survive the changing seasons. Dead Soul Tribe tackles this unique topic by pondering what it might be like to be a tree in January, enlightening the listener on this lonely and dreadful existence. This is a creative theme and it is done to the tune of captivating music.


Tracklisting:
Spiders And Flies / Sirens / The Love Of Hate / Why? / The Coldest Days Of Winter / Wings Of Faith / Toy Rockets Waiting For The Answer / Just Like A Timepiece / Lady Of Rain

Musicians:
Devon Graves - vocals, guitar
Roland 'Rollz' Kerschbaumer - rhythm guitar
Adel Moustafa - drums
Roland Ivenz - bass
Volker Wilschko - guitar

Discography:
Dead Soul Tribe (2002)
A Murder Of Crows (2003)
The January Tree (2004)
The Dead Word (2005)
A Lullaby For The Devil (2007)

Genre: Progressive-Power Metal

Origin US

Added: August 22nd 2004
Reviewer: Joshua "Prawg Dawg" Turner
Score:
Artist website: www.deadsoultribe.com
Hits: 3358
Language: english

  

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