Customer Reviews

Worlds Apart

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I just randomly decided to get this one day and I'm so glad I did. Best way to explain this would be indie punk, I think. I rarely give anything 5 stars (the only thing that comes to mind is arcade fire, and even that isnt as good as this). I love every single song on this ablum and that is extremely rare. I like the way that they know how and when to go loud rock/soft rock. Track by track? Ok...

1. Ode to Isis
GREAT introduction to the CD. Having an almost gothic instrumental to begin with then proceding to a scream and at the very end getting a womans voice saying "And you will know us by the trail of dead" is just fantastic.

2. Will You Smile Again?
FANTASTIC drums. Great, great, great drums. Having the singing start half way through the song is very cool indeed. Catchy too. I love this guys voice, I've gotta say.

3. Worlds Apart
Second best song on the album (imo). Loving the "candy store of ours" bit. Lovely lyrics. Everything about this song is great.

4. Summer of '91
Good use of the soft/loud technique, nice to sing along to.

5. Rest Will Follow
Third best song on the album (imo). This was the first song I loved on the whole album. The "...well I knooow, how the best will fall. And the rest will follooow..." bit was stuck in my head for days. Great drums.

6. Caterwaul
GREAT drums. This is the worst song on the album, yet it is still fantastic.

7. Classic Arts Showcase
This song sounds a bit like Incubus (early Incubus, that is). Damn I love this guys voice.

8. Let It Dive
BEST song on the album (imo). I love its simpleness and subtlety. The lyrics are nice as well. Alos, the pretend ending is great. I've noticed that these people do this alot. The piano at the very end is sweet. The voice at the end speaking in a foreign language (that may be Russian) freaks me out though. Sounds like some dying grandma.

9. To Russia My Homeland
What a fantastic instrumental. I LOVE this. Violins + drums = greatness.

10. All White
Beautiful. Background singers? Yes.

11. Best
Great to sing along to. The sudden stops are great, they work nicely. The lyrics again are mightly fine. "...and things couldn't be better..." "...this is one fine life..." "they are the best!, the best!, the best!..." The screaming lady at the end fits in nicely somehow. And the intertextuality of putting lyrics from Worlds Apart at the very very end is nice.

12. Lost City of Refuge
Soft, nice, sleepy and then BANG into an explosive rock. Love it, love it, love it. Again, the pretend ending, nice.

I think the reason a lot of people were let down by "Worlds Apart" is that they were expecting "Source Tags & Codes". Truly the mark of a great band is their ability to let style evolve without loseing the original appeal that made them popular. After all, If you're just going to make the same album over and over, What's the point? Where's the risk? I for one love were Trail of Dead's music is going and am looking forward to future releases from them. So F**k what ya heard about "Worlds Apart" and give it a chance you wanker.

Like many others, the song that really got stuck in my head from this album was "The Rest Will Follow." You've probably heard it making its rounds on the radio, with it's catchy refrain and cool drum licks. As good as this song is, the rest of the album soars higher. This is one of the few albums I have recently purchased that I DIDN'T later regret... I can't imagine anyone being anything but pleased with this one.

Just listened to this album for the first time and I really dig it. Their first two albums were ok, Source Tags & Codes was awesome and this one is also quite excellent with no dud tracks at all. Awesome production quality and the best sounding vocals so far. Love the variety of different instruments they use throughout.

I'm going to make this short.
This is a good collection of songs (IMO).
Upon 1st listening, "will you smile again?" kind of threw me off about a minute and 27 seconds in (b/c it changes so drastically), but after that initial listen, it was all good. I have been listening to this thing non-stop for about a week. I love it...

The band has now wholeheartedly embraced the pomp of prog rock without the pretense of Mars Volta. You might think, hey.. dude.. theres a waltz on here, well just don't think about that. Their songwriting is tight and muscular as an album with bird calls in it can be. It starts with that intro, which I have yet to find one person who didn't think it was awesome. I mean, even the NBA used it, THE NBA. HELL YEAH. Then come the sledgehammer riffs with a layer of shoegaze drone behind them, but always a bit reckless and never perfect. Then Conrad's voice which is pretty not good, but he can sing, if that makes sense. All told, this is nowhere near the masterwork that Source Tags & Codes is, that album didn't overreach with the prettiness, and it was the first true "punk" (UH OH HE SAID PUNK) album I have heard in YEARS. It was rough, raw, and completely nonsensical, it wasn't satisfied to be stuck in three chord dirges or yell and repeat choruses. These guys were going for the moon, and they got there. This is them pulling back from that insanity. Caterwaul, Let it Dive, Worlds Apart, and The Rest will Follow are all great songs. But the dip into power-balladry is unneeded, as is the aforementioned waltz or whatever. But I still love the album, just not as much as I probably should.

So many musical elements are blended in this album, they've really stretched out and tried new things. Also, The sound bites are mixed in perfectly with the songs. Just when you think you know were a song is headed, it goes off in a creative direction. The first time I listened to the album I would have rated it a 3. After reading some of the lyrics and getting accustomed to the transitions I'm loving it. The second half is better than the first half IMO. The 'pink floydesque' background vocals sound so smooth and ethereal. This album is like one of those sour tarts in this candy store of ours...bites at you but you can't get enough.

This album marks a major evolution in the bands music. They still have the attitude, but they've added development. All the songs on here are well developed, Many have multiple distinct movements, multiple bridges, and even multiple time signatures. The production has moved up several notches with more different instrumentation and ambient sounds. You'll hear some of the best alternative rock drumming around songs whipping from odd to even time signatures and back again.

In short, it's clear that they put a lot of work into this and I hope to hear more. The band explores a wider range of musical styles than on previous efforts, including classical rock styles reminiscent of Bowie or Pink Floyd. They could have made another "Source Tags & Codes" (and you can hear it still there) but everyone would have said that "their albums all sound alike". I think they pushed the envelope but in general hit the ball out of the park. More bands need to work as hard as this.

It seems to me that far too many people are really missing the boat on this album. You see, unlike all the folks who love to tell you that they knew T.O.D. WAY BACK WHEN, I first heard them on "Source Tags & Codes," which I instantly fell in love with. Then I bought "Secret of Elena's Tomb" (which everyone seems to forget about), and THEN I heard the s/t release and "Madonna." As far as I can tell, when you get to love a band from day one, you love who they WERE, not who they ARE. And I see that happening here. Rather than accepting "Worlds Apart" for what it is--a stunningly rich, textured album by a workmanlike band intent on honing their craft--fans of "Madonna"-era TOD would rather gripe about how they've become a "prog" band.

I would ask anyone who thinks "Worlds Apart" is a prog record to kindly go look up the term "progressive rock." It's not even neo-prog (Mars Volta, Coheed & Cambria, etc.) It's dense, intelligent rock. And to abuse a cliche, it truly IS the next natural step in their ouvre. Look at the aforementioned "Secret of Elena's Tomb," which received nearly universal acclaim: you see "Source Tags & Codes"-type rock, some acoustic material, and some electronic/sonic experimentation. You do NOT see the same material as on their first two releases. Conclusion? They are evolving. The Beatles evolved. (Sgt. Pepper anyone? Did that sound anything like the "Hard Day's Night" that had teenage girls fainting and wailing?) Led Zeppelin evolved. (Physical Graffiti anyone? Talking Heads were about to blow the world open with New Wave, and Zep was embracing the idea just to stay relevant.) Every musical act worth its salt evolves. For the sake of argument, look at Everclear as an example of a band refusing to evolve. And hence, their name is not mentioned without a derisive (and deserved) snigger. The departure of Busch has not rendered T.O.D. an overblown, cape-wearing bunch of proggy wanksters. They are redefining; and while "Worlds Apart" may not reach the heights of "Source Tags & Codes" (which is an unfair expectation), it is a terrifically inspired (yes, INSPIRED), inspirational, and cathartic record. We could pitch a fit over the hystrionics of "Ode to Isis" or the full choir behind "All White" or the strange decision to end a strong album with a weak song ("Lost City of Refuge"); but ultimately, these gripes pale beside the 1-2-3-4 punch of "Worlds Apart," "Summer of '91," "The Rest Will Follow," and "Caterwaul," not to mention the emotional and lyrical bombardment of "Will You Smile Again?" and the theatrical, churning stomp of "Let It Dive" (my favorite song here, and perhaps in their entire catalog). And who cares if "To Russia My Homeland" doesn't fit? It's tearfully gorgeous.

And may I remind you that this is NOT a concept album, NOT a prog album, and NOT a cohesive statement. Let go of what you've HEARD an album is SUPPOSED to be and JUST ENJOY IT. I've never heard a less cohesive statement than "Sgt. Pepper," but we don't gripe over that, do we? No, because we just enjoy the music. I think the people who love to complain "This isn't Source Tags!!!" are losing their focus on musical history. Expand your horizons. Go listen to Talking Heads. Go listen to The Roots. Go listen to "Their Satanic Majesty's Request," for crying out loud. Like a wine enthusiast who has been standing in the tasting room too long, drink some water! THEN you'll be ready to come back to your beloved Pinot Noir. (Incidentally, and this is off-topic: if you can't watch Sideways without concluding that Pinot Noir must be better than Merlot, you are a hopeless, brainless turd.)

T.O.D. is trying to make a grand statement, not a unified one; if a few eggs break for the proverbial omelette, so be it. Serve it up hot, please!

This is an album for people who like to listen to albums - an organic, edgy soundscape that runs on from song to song like acts in a play - with catchy numbers. I'm a Radiohead fanatic but I listen to this more than any other album in my collection because it's a fresh, beautiful noise that you don't necessarily need to focus *all* your attention on to enjoy.
I got hold of this randomly and then bought 'Source Tags and Codes'; after many listens I rate this album much more highly.