Tau Cross : " Pillar of Fire"

If it wasn't for the fact that Away plays drums on this, I would not cover this album. This hesitation is based off the fact certain parties of the band acted like big babies after I reviewed the album for this blog and Cvlt Nation. I think the fact I am very blunt particularly in regards to a band wearing their influences on their sleeves irked the parties and the fact I continued to point this out in both review rather than kiss their ass. So here is the fucking news...this is my blog so I write whatever the fuck I want in it. If you are in a band and are ungrateful for me investing the time in your music, then fuck you.It's not my fault that I have been listening to music for over thirty five years so am well steeped in it's history. This history once again haunts the band as the ghosts of Killing Joke haunt the opening track. While this song doesn't really blow me away the fact I can draw comparisons to Killing Joke is a positive thing. If I felt these guys were being a Killing Joke tribute act then I would call them out on it, but I think there is enough of them invested in it and I like the fact some of the riffs remind me more of Voivod, than what was on the first album. If you read this blog on a regular basis then you know Voivod is one of favorite bands. Thus why I am reviewing this, along with the fact Away has always been cool with me and gracious with his time .

This album begins to show the improvements made in their sound since the first album. "Bread and Circuses" is heavier than we we heard previous from this band. There is also a more goth tinged take on post-punk with "On the Water". Away's drumming is more restrained than what he does with Voivod and allows him to indulge his punk rock leanings. "Deep State" finds the band milking the verse riff for all it's worth, and while you can hear the Motorhead influence I would say this sort of thing almost owes more to Hawkwind. They return to a darker sound on the title track. The vocals are more of a baritone croon here, shedding the rasp that typically dominates them. The vocals have an odd tone on the verses of "Killing the King". They sound better when they go down into the more familiar husky lower register. They amp things up into a more metallic direction with the pounding chug of " A White House".

They continue to use a wide range of dynamics on "the Big House". So far on this album they have their influences much more blended with their own collective identities on this album. The melody on this song has a solid hook that sticks with you. They use "RFID"  to vent some of their thrashy punk tendencies. The sung vocals come in with their dramatic baritone as the last thing you might expect over this tempo. The post-Apocalyptic throb of "Seven Wheels" has more in common with Amebix. The album closes with a song that ranges from the more folk side of neo-crust to what sounds like one of Motorhead's more power ballad moments. These guys took what they did on their first album and moved it in a heavier and darker direction with a very dynamic and varied blend of the styles that make them who they are. I'll round this up to a 9.5 as it is a huge success in terms of the album they set out to make.

10.4

Tau Cross : "s/t"

So you that when Away from Voivod is in a side project now with some of the guys from Amebix and the curst band Misery, so of course I am going to be all over this. The first song falls somewhere between Celtic Frost and Motorhead. It's harder and darker than Voivod, but also  there is now space prog to be found. The first few songs are a much more straight ahead metal affair than you might expect from these guys. "Fire In the Sky" pretty much takes a full chug ahead and "Stone Cutter"  thrashes in a similar manner to "Orgasmatron" era Motorhead, though it is darker.

Ron the Baron Miller throaty vocals are more sung than Lemmy's and on a song like "Midsummer" you can hear some of the Killing Joke influence.Miller sometimes sings more than others times though he never really a growls, but rather tends to gurgle.  It sounds like some one takes the mic for the higher vocal that starts off "Hangman's Hyll". This ends up becoming almost a hard rock folk song. Like Hawkwind jamming with Spinal Tap. The folk infusion does not end there. It carries over into "We Control the Fear"that finds the vocals staying in a lower register, but still capable of holding a smooth melody. This comes to an end with the almost industrial pound of "You People".  Here the Hawkwind collides in the bleak Drugged heaven with Killing Joke. The metallic side of the band begins to once more return as the dominate personality though you can here British post-punk mixing with the chug and punk vocal chants chiming in.

The vocals have a more Fields of the Nephilim urgency on "Sons of the Soul".  When the higher vocals comes in it offsets the lower vocal and creates a more Pink Floyd dynamic. More big industrial tinged metal kicks you in the face on "the Lie". When I say it's industrial I am not saying there are drum machines , but it has a big post-apocalyptic chug like 90s Killing Joke. On this song the guitar solos take it in more of a rock n roll direction, along with the more subdued Dave Gilmore like vocal that coasts in at the end. They keep turning it up past ten on "Our Day". The more folk side resurfaces  to close out the album with "the Devil He knows His Own".This feels more like a outro rather than a song in and of its self. This wasn't what I thought it was going to sound like , but then again I am not complaining either.I'll give this one a 9.5. It could grow on me in either direction at this point , but there are more reasons for it to sway towards a 10 , though the songs are a little simplistic in nature, especially if you compare it to Voi Vod, making it sound like Away is taking it easy. The vocals are where the album shines the most along with the feel the band puts behind the guitars.