The Fall of Troy - Dopplegänger
Record Label: Equal Vision Records
Release Date: August 16, 2005
At the core of Doppelgänger (the band's second full-length, their first on Equal Vision), The Fall of Troy has constructed a greatly produced post-hardcore meets progressive rock. Constructed with shrill screams and high vocals reminiscent of Vic Fuentes, Doppelgänger truly is an entertaining listen with complete guitar distortion, wankery, and all that (maybe not so) wonderful stuff.
The instrumentation is dominated by Thomas Erak, the vocalist and only guitarist of The Fall of Troy. From the get-go, it's easy to see that Erak is a very talented musician; he holds the ability to create very technical pieces that are full of arpeggio and simultaneously generate a perceptable groove and a plain ol' catchy melody. However, the album seems to use a copy-and-paste guitar technique. Very distorted high-pitch guitars blast away. But eventually we understand that Thomas can use a distortion pedal and incessant arpeggio. One ruminates and ponders where the slow tracks that their first full length used wonderfully are.
It's immediately apparent that the tone of this album is much different than anything TFoT has done before. It's a much happier, much more lively sound. At first, the album seems to show TFoT's poppier side with such tracks as "Act One, Scene One" and "I Just Got This Symphony Goin'." However the album turns into a much heavier, faster sound that calls for Erak's brand of guitar wankery. Tracks like "We Better Learn How to Hotwire a Uterus" and "Whacko Jacko Steals the Elephant Man's Bones" are metal-paced (if not faster) and incorporate different tools utilized by hardcore bands (breakdowns, blast-beat, etc.). TFoT shows that they're skilled at one or the other, but they need to master both types of songwriting to truly reach their potential. And trust me, their potential is massive.
Another thing that needs some serious work is their lyrics. Who wants to hear: "Lock the doors/Turn off the lights/Remove all your clothes"? There are obviously more intelligent ways to say something then the aforementioned. It's pretty abysmal actually. However, while the lyrical (dis)ability of the band is the major downfall, there are enough benefits of the listen to appreciate what The Fall of Troy is doing, just not enough to give Erak that Best Guitarist Award he so desires.
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