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Testing Tomorrow: Tribes
Testing Tomorrow Tribes CD Album Review

Testing Tomorrow: Tribes

(Melodic) Heavy Rock/Metal
4.0/5.0

Website Facebook Twitter YouTube
Unsigned / Self-released
Words by Craig Hartranft,  18.06.2014

Coming from the Los Angeles area, Testing Tomorrow brings their second effort, Tribes, the newest in nearly seven years. Give this album one spin, and you have some instant familiarity with the band's sound.

Testing Tomorrow Tribes Band Photo

Testing Tomorrow: on a lonely road.

The net you cast must likely be thrown back 20 years to catch genres like grunge, stoner, and post grunge rock and including influences like Alice in Chains, Queens of the Stone Age, Audioslave among others. However, I wouldn't go to far down that stoner rock road as the music is that downtrodden and meandering. Yet, maybe Mr. Lover, but especially Olivia, might fit the bill.

Testing Tomorrow is more like friendly post grunge melodic heavy rock, sometime bordering on metal like Black Cats or Haunting Me. Yet that latter song more likely points to something greater: TT's ability to craft a heavy rock song with a catchy melody, nice groove, and good vocals. This comes through once again with Satellite, something that should be getting some serious airplay on alt or college radio venues. Vocalist Jesse Dean is a real asset to this band; he sings clean, yet with resolve and variation.

Another point of interest is Testing Tomorrow's use of strings in several songs, notably the ballads Terra Firma and Water, where they're stronger on the former. Honestly, at first I wasn't all that impressed with either song as they just seemed mundane and dragging. But the strings made them sound really cool, even lush and dramatic. It appears TT also has a sense of humor with First String Boozers, a barrelling rocker for all things alcoholic. A final mention should be made of two things: the drumming of Diego "Grom" Meraviglia is rather impressive and the production is exceptional, crisp and even. For something more mainstream, having a foot in both past and present, in the alternative melodic heavy rock scene, Testing Tommorow's Tribes is worth your attention. Recommended.


Testing Tomorrow - Satellite





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In Short

For something more mainstream, having a foot in both past and present, in the alternative melodich heavy rock scene, Testing Tommorow's Tribes is worth your attention.

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