Darren McLeod
11/20/05, 06:09 PM
If there ever was a definitive album to hold an eighth grade dance to, Tourmaline's Strange Distress Calls would be it. I'm not being condescending in the least, but rather the opposite - the variety in the album's tempo and the overall whimsical nature that escapes from this power-pop disc are all well suited for such a dance floor.
The album kicks off with the fast-paced "Earthquakes and Accidents," which then moves seamlessly into what certainly would be their music video debut if they had one released, "One Chance." The catchy synth-led chorus is absolutely irresistable as singer Matt Rauch belts out "You know you've got only one chance to believe in, in the good life." "Blank" then begins with a subdued introduction with a very new-wave style voice filter, and moves into the bouncy synth-pop that the band has been playing so successfully.
Nearing the middle of the album is "First Time," one of the slower and deeper tracks of the album, but also one of the strongest. The instrumentation is very spacey and fits the mood completely, and singer Matt Rauch's voice rarely sounds better than it does here. The tension of the song builds up into a crescendo near the end, which then fades out, leaving a few seconds of silence until Corey Zaloom's synth kicks in again with the next track, "Waiting For A Heart Attack."
A few tracks later, the slowest track of the album, "Grey Skies," is a mostly-acoustic number where Rauch's vocals take the spotlight. He pulls it off admirably, with his near-falsetto chorus flowing beautifully over the subtle piano and acoustic guitar. The album closes with the great "April O' Neil," a song driven by the band's knack for knowing how to craft a catchy chorus, and the excellent closing gang-vocals and hand-claps conclude the album on a high note.
Tourmaline has all the makings for success. They have proven themselves more than capable of writing both excellent slow ballads and upbeat pop numbers, and they have that inate ability of knowing what is ear-pleasing. The synth and piano really add to diversify the songs, avoiding the repetitive nature some pop records suffer from, resulting in a consistantly great album that should garner the band a number of new fans as they continue their non-stop touring routine.
The album kicks off with the fast-paced "Earthquakes and Accidents," which then moves seamlessly into what certainly would be their music video debut if they had one released, "One Chance." The catchy synth-led chorus is absolutely irresistable as singer Matt Rauch belts out "You know you've got only one chance to believe in, in the good life." "Blank" then begins with a subdued introduction with a very new-wave style voice filter, and moves into the bouncy synth-pop that the band has been playing so successfully.
Nearing the middle of the album is "First Time," one of the slower and deeper tracks of the album, but also one of the strongest. The instrumentation is very spacey and fits the mood completely, and singer Matt Rauch's voice rarely sounds better than it does here. The tension of the song builds up into a crescendo near the end, which then fades out, leaving a few seconds of silence until Corey Zaloom's synth kicks in again with the next track, "Waiting For A Heart Attack."
A few tracks later, the slowest track of the album, "Grey Skies," is a mostly-acoustic number where Rauch's vocals take the spotlight. He pulls it off admirably, with his near-falsetto chorus flowing beautifully over the subtle piano and acoustic guitar. The album closes with the great "April O' Neil," a song driven by the band's knack for knowing how to craft a catchy chorus, and the excellent closing gang-vocals and hand-claps conclude the album on a high note.
Tourmaline has all the makings for success. They have proven themselves more than capable of writing both excellent slow ballads and upbeat pop numbers, and they have that inate ability of knowing what is ear-pleasing. The synth and piano really add to diversify the songs, avoiding the repetitive nature some pop records suffer from, resulting in a consistantly great album that should garner the band a number of new fans as they continue their non-stop touring routine.