When The Ripple Effect first started way back when we got inundated with submissions from a variety of sources, and I recall receiving a copy of Tribulation’s first album, The Horror. At the time, I don’t believe that I was overly impressed, at least, not enough to pen a response of how it made me feel…and it took a stand-out performance opening for Opeth that figuratively slapped me across the face for me to realize that I may be overlooking a gem of a band. Message received, Rock n Roll gods. Message received.
I was enthralled by the band’s performance, enough so that I immediately bookmarked Tribulation’s Spotify page to revisit as soon as possible. And, that’s when I recognized that they were about to release their new album, Sub Rosa In Æternum, so I waited for the official release….and then subsequently forgot about listening to it.
Until today.
One of the beautiful things about art is that it doesn’t need to grab you immediately to have value. Sometimes, especially with music, there’s an incubation period where the art steeps in its sonic juices until some internal cook timer goes off, and it’s time to remove the magical stew from the heat.
The first thing that I noticed between that initial listening of The Horror and the live performance that I witnessed was that the band had shifted from the more straightforward death metal approach, and had adopted a melodic, goth-y ambient vibe….I even mentioned to a friend that they reminded me of Bauhaus, and I was comically awaiting for them to break into a version of “Bela Lugosi’s Dead”. Spoiler alert: They never did.
As I hunkered down and listened to Sub Rosa In Æternum, I was immediately impressed with the production value. The instruments, compositions, and performances making it easy to consume, compelling me to sink deeper into my chair and truly absorb the sounds that pummeled my soul.
The ominous and haunting bass line that opens the album's lead track, “The Unrelenting Choir”, surrounded by the swirling atmospherics, sets a great tone for the oncoming aural journey. The guitars sound sinister, layered, and building on top of each other … and then the deep, morose voice of Johannes Andersson creeps from the mist, goth-y, dark, and moody. Almost two and half minutes in, the drums drop and the groove rumbles and vibrates the cells in my body, and then the song fades away. Just as I was thinking, ‘That’s the end of the song?’, the band explodes into the upbeat and bouncy “Tainted Skies”.
I remember the track “Saturn Coming Down” being played at the Opeth show and it was one of the standout moments, mostly because there was a kid standing in front of me, an obvious Tribulation fan, rocking out and singing his face off - fuck! I loved how into the band he was! And, I believe it was guitarist Joseph Tholl who recognized him for his passion and love for the new songs. The kid just rocked out even harder! The song is moody and melodic and has one of those memorable choruses that you find yourself humming while in the shower or pulling the weeds from the garden. Pure earworm!
Four tracks in and “Hungry Waters” continues the flow of clean groove and distorted rock. I love the symbolism within the lyrics and especially related to the idea of being swept away by the waters that want to simply consume me. The lyrics work really well with the shimmering, fluid guitar sounds, tonally reminding me of The Fixx guitarist, Jamie West-Oram. The background vocals do a great job of providing a juxtaposition between that of Andersson’s deep, droning croon. The musical interlude of the twin guitars trading leads, then entwining with the keyboards, and then the drums before taking the listener over the edge of the waterfall to splash in the refreshing deep pool of sound, allowing us to drift into oblivion. I’m feeling this song the most….it’s already in my playlist.
Every song on Sub Rosa In Æternum has a Wow! moment that makes me smile and nod my head approvingly. Those little moments that soothe my tortured musical soul. Those little licks that make one musician look at another and nod. I may have been one of the fortunate to have heard Tribulation with their debut record, I just wish that I had taken the time to stick through that first album to go on the full musical journey with the band. Sorry guys….I’m on the boat now, and I’m stoked to see that y’all persevered and created this wonderful sonic-scape of an album. Much needed in my vinyl collection, so I’ll probably be doing some shopping this holiday season. Strong album, and I highly recommend y’all put on a pair of noise-canceling headphones and crank this bitch up!
-Pope
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