Customer Reviews

Tides of Tomorrow

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Cave In is an incredibly talented quartet of Boston musicians, capable of mixing atmospheric guitar techniques and sounds with the simplicity of a catchy pop song. The band's technical skill can hardly be debated - every person who hears this band can probably say, regardless whether they like the music or not, that the band definitely has chops. Singer Stephen Brodsky's voice has come a long way since the band's metal days - his range is phenomenonal, and his style is very clean and strong. The bass and drums on this EP pound away at each other, while still keeping reigns on the complex song structures the band employs. The guitars of Brodsky and Adam McGrath duel back and forth in guitar solos like two rattlesnakes in battle, each looking for the right moment to strike. The band is, if nothing else, incredibly tight.

The only problem is, there's just a lack of interest on my part in these songs. And that's a pretty big problem. To those who have not followed Cave In's career, the band started off as an insane metal band, and recorded one proper album and a bunch of 7"s with that style. Then the band "evolved" into their current entity with the "Creative Eclipses" EP, and completed their metamorphosis with their "Jupiter" LP. Now, I love the old Cave In, but the new stuff has grown on me too [but not to the extent as the old material].

My complaint about this EP, though, is that it fails where the band's last two proper releases succeeded - there's no emotion. On "Jupiter" and "Creative Eclipses," you could tell the band was wrestling with it's sound, and they weren't sure what to do. But they stuck to their guns, made the music they wanted to make, and made themselves happy. Songs like "Jupiter" and "Big Riff" get to me every time I hear them, because I can just feel the intensity the band played them with. On this EP, it just feels flat.

"Come Into Your Own" is a good opener, with soaring vocals by Brodsky as well as a driving tribal drum sound from drummer John-Robert Conners. "The Calypso" is a Hum-esque waltz through various guitar effects that succeeds to an extent, winning the award for second best track on the EP. The most exciting song out of the six is a cover of "The Callus" by the now-defunct Giant's Chair [best known for their contribution to Tree's Postmarked Stamps 7" collection] - it's kind of sad when the song that makes my ears perk up the most isn't actually *by* the band in question. Tracks like "Everest" and "Tides Of Tomorrow" seem to be too slow for their own good, though and both drudge along past the five minute mark.

The EP musically is solid as anything out there today. Like I said before, my only big complaint is the lack of effort that I believe is displayed on these songs. This is a mediocre effort from a band I know can do better, and I hope they're saving it up for their RCA debut next year. We'll all just have to wait and see.

I bought this album at an Isis show a couple weeks before the actual release. I remember seeing it at the Hydrahead table and being so excited. I think that's all I talked about aside from actually seeing Isis for the first time that night. When I got home, I tore open the cd and put it in. Of course, me being obsessed with Cave In and all, I loved the album on the first listen. I was a little confused by the almost tropical feel to Tides of Tomorrow and the Calypso, but once I listened to it more I really grew to love the entire album. Tides of Tomorrow has one of the best guitar solos Cave In has done to date. Everest is a powerful closer, that they claim is a very good take off of The Battle of Evermore by Led Zeppelin. The Giants Chair cover is probably the most rocking song on the album, but it's nice to see Cave In really rock out, b/c they can do it with the best of them. Dark Driving is possibly my favorite song on the album, mainly for the really dark, almost creepy guitar riff that is employed in the chorus. That thing gets stuck in your head and just doesn't leave. This album isn't as good as Jupiter and it sees the band progress more into the focused space rock of bands like Failure, but it's certainly still better than just about anything else out there and of course, it's still a great album.

Everything about this cd keeps bringing me back. The variety of guitar techniques that Cave in uses has always been outstanding, and a sampling of each can be found on this cd. Though it may not be better than Jupiter, it is a concise yet thorough venture into a sound that, at the time, was still new for the band. It's Jupiter with a little more experience, less edge, and not a second of dragging. They have managed to fill the half hour or so of music with variety, from tribal sounding drum grooves, excellent bass playing, and amazing guitar and vocal harmonies. You can't go wrong with this album.

2 1/2

The once bludgeoning metal band continued opting down a well established path of pop-rock accessibility, offering a solid, if quite unnecessary EP which often borrows direct structural elements heard in Jupiter & Antenna, to less distinct success.

After I fell in love with their Antenna album, I picked up the Tides of Tomorrow EP. If you thought Antenna was great, you'll love this. The first four songs are incredible, and the last 2 are pretty good too. Oh and don't forget to catch them live, they're awesome!

While this is indeed an extraordinary EP, it lacks the cohesion of Cave In's full lengths and the songs are a tad more draining, almost as if they were relegated to this EP rather than "Antenna" for a reason. Of course, it IS Cave in, so it still rocks like nobody's business. You've got two of their Failure-esque power ballads, a quasi-stolen Zepplin guitar strum (compare "Everest" and "The Battle of Evermore"), a more melodic Hum ("Calypso), and a breezy, beachfront song that's worth the price of admission by itself (the title song). Yet another adventure in creative rock and roll brought to us by Cave In.

A Space Rock masterpiece. This 6-song ep is a worthy followup to the stellar epic "Jupiter", one of the most underrated albums in years. "Tides" is a showcase of the Methuen natives' ability to continue creating deep, ethereal songs even in a major-label environment. "Everest" echoes of a spacey version of Led Zeppelin's "The Battle of Evermore". The title track weaves their trademark imagery into an almost dreamlike picture of an island paradise. Cave In has developed quite a bit from the days of the growling guitars and vocals of the "Beyond Hypothermia"/"Until Your Heart Stops" albums. Lead singer Stephen Brodsky's voice has developed quite nicely since "Jupiter". The lyrics seem to float through as many dimensions as the music, showcasing Brodsky's increasing songwriting talent.

They always seem to give their fans a treat to "Tide" them over until their next project is done. They're currently opening for the Foo Fighters on their European stadium tour. Expect big things from this band in the future... their major label debut album (Antenna) will be here by early March.

Cave In is a scary band. You know they haven't reached their full potential, yet they already are releasing fantastic material that can crush most of the other so-called rock that's out there. So that leaves you to ponder, "Where are these guys going to end up?"

This EP expounds on the band's 2000 album, Jupiter. The long (yet not boring), loud, and melodic songs are still there. But here on this EP they proved they can write a few lighter songs that still can pack quite a punch, displayed in "The Calypso" and the awesome title track, which starts off like a warm summer breeze that builds up into music that the band is better known for. If their upcoming LP expounds on this, we're going to realize we have something really special in Cave In.

Cave In's latest release is in the vein of Jupiter in the sense of writing sprawling rock opuses: the difference is that instead of relying just on indulgently fantastic rock melodies, the band has matured into a sophisticated rock band at the tender young age. Stephen Brodsky's voice soars throughout this record (as always) and, while a short EP, remains an extremely accomplished songwriter. "Come Into Your Own" is kept with the tight drumming, beautiful arpeggated chords, and twangy, simplistic guitar playing. This theme is continued throughout the EP: Instead of writing a prog-rock masterpiece, Cave In wrote extremely long songs that ROCK. The EP dabbles in between dark rock songs that recollect the metal gods (see "Dark Driving") and beautiful, flowing pieces that remind of summer days ("Tides of Tommorow").

There might be the only complaint on the songs: they go on. and on. and on. They are a bit long, which isn't neccessarily a bad thing, but a repetition of a chorus for over a minute can be relatively painstaking. The songs are fantastic and, if they were shorter, they'd be all over modern radio. Which would be a welcomed change, a band of competent musicians and smart songwriters taking the mainstage.

Check out this CD. If you own Jupiter, this'll be an essential upgrade, and if you have never heard Cave In before, check this out if you generally like rock 'n' roll. This is a rock record under every aspect, and a darn good one.

Cave In's last release 'Jupiter' was a revelation. Prog rock elements merged beautifully with crushing hardcore riffs to tranpsort the listener into stellar new soundscapes. And this release continues that trend.

One thing that cannot be said of Cave In is that they dont evolve. First they were screamo-core, then space rock, then pop...and now, well now theyre everything. Opener 'Come Into Your Own' features beats and robotic rhythms, third track 'The Calypso' is rock at it's purest and most melodic, but doesn't lose that edge or power. The title track, however, is something else. Sounding like Ed Harcourt it is extremely laid back and features vocalist Stephen Brodsky crooning over the gently strummed guitars. Closer 'Everest' is remeniscant of the Jupiter material - it sounds liek theyre taking you on a journey up to the highest peaks.

Emotional; powerful; challenging; aggressive; gentle; Cave In