Sea of Sorrow by Tombstones in Their Eyes–Album Review
Sea of Sorrow by Tombstones in Their Eyes–Album Review
Tombstones in Their Eyes is a thrilling throwback for an LA resident like me. As a new transplant to Los Angeles in the late 90s and early 00s, I arrived at the height of Anton Newcombeās empire of psychedelic revivalism. Bands like Brian Jonestown Massacre, the Warlocks, the Quarter After, Stevenson Ranch Davidians, and the Tyde ruled the roost in the East LA hip spots like Spaceland and the Echo. While most of those bands took the 60s ācountry in the canyonā vibe to a higher level, the Warlocks and early BJM were more about drones and fuzz. They brought a more modern flavor to the cityās āByrds reduxā stew. Brian Jonestown melded the country hippy sound with a shoegaze aesthetic formed almost directly from the UKās Jesus and Mary Chain and Spaceman 3. The band is hard to pigeonhole (thankfully), but Tombstones weaves their sound between Dream Pop, Shoegaze, late-60s Psychedelic, Stoner Rock, and Desert Dazeāintensely insistent on their music erupting out of your speakers with fiery, fuzzy guitars and tight, dreamy, āverbed out harmonies.
Tombstoneās new album Sea of Sorrow has a subdued and measured sound within a wash of vocal harmonies.
Though Tombstones in Their Eyes took their name from a lyric in Steppenwolfās classic āThe Pusher,ā thatās where any similarity ends. While Steppenwolfās songs were aggressive and bold, Tombstoneās new album Sea of Sorrow has a subdued and measured sound within a wash of vocal harmonies. How does one further describe this band? Dead Meadow but less metallic? Stevenson Ranch Davidians with mumbly vocals? The Black Angels with less melody? Their low-energy fuzz riffery lives between the acid raindrops of Jesus and Mary Chainās Psychocandy and Brian Jonestown Massacreās Methodrone.
Just by looking at the song titles on Sea of Sorrow, youāll get a hint of the lyrical content. āTrapped,ā āNumb,ā āA Way Out,ā and āDead Insideā all show signs that guitarist/singer/songwriter John TreanorĀ is feeling some existential dread. And while the lyrics are proudly dismal on several tracks, āWe Are Goldā is closer to a love song and a welcome reprieve from the grim, depressive lyricism. Itās a ray of hope shining in the gloomy hole from which the album resides.
The song āLifeā is a crunchy cry of remorse. It has a laid-back stoner rock vibe with John Treanorās signature mono-drone vocals. It plays like a lost gem from the Warlocks.
The crucial, reverbed vocals combined with the classic three-chord rock of āHeartā is reminiscent of Stevenson Ranch Davidians or Brian Jonestown Massacre in the mid-2000s. This also could have been a Neil Young backing track with different lyrics and vocal timbre.
Karin Johansson
āHopeā has a floaty, Spiritualized feel to itāsounding like a grungy, garage rock version of something off of Lazer Guided Melodies. It also features a ghostly chorus of astronautical voices that should put the listener in the right headspace.
Like a lot of their songs on this release, āHey Manā features a chorus that creates a hypnotic mantra-like repetitionāa riff and lyric that will keep burrowing into your subconscious. Though I wonder if the threeĢµĢµĢµĢµĢµĢ¶Ģ¶Ģ¶Ģ¶Ģ¶-chord riffs and drone vocals on the album wonāt wear out their welcome over time.
I do have some reservations about this latest offering. The production value of Sea of Sorrow is very different than the promising sound of āI Know Why,ā the lead track on their 2022 EP A Higher Place. While itās a given that an album named Sea of Sorrow SHOULD sound different than one named A Higher Place, the loss of depth and shimmer on this album is a step backward.
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