Reviews

Music From Regions Beyond

Tiger Army

Released: Jun 5, 2007
Label: Epitaph
Reviewed by: William Jones
2 comments

I'll admit, I've never been a big Tiger Army fan. As far as rockabilly or any mash-ups of rockabilly and other genres go, there have always been a number of bands I'd chosen before Tiger Army, such as Australia's The Living End, The Reverend Horton Heat, or Nekromantix. While technically solid, Tiger Army has, in comparison, always seemed to lack a passion about its craft. Nick 13's smooth, drawn-out vocals have always been a precise complement to the music, but seem to lack any form of dynamic passion. In short, I've never understood how so many people could be so passionate about a band that seems to be one of the least passionate in its genre. Maybe it's the dark nature of the sound and lyrics that's so appealing?

That said, I can still respect the solid songwriting/performance and the way the band has bent that very genre in an original way, now more so than ever. Music From Regions Beyond offers an extremely varied experience. There is plenty of the more traditional psychobilly sound present, but there is also a bit of straight, dark punk, "Forever Fades Away," a new wave track, "As the Cold Rain Falls", a strange Spanish-language song, "Hechizo De Amor," and even a country steeped tune, "Where the Moss Slowly Grows." If nothing else, Tiger Army is stretching the boundaries of its sound, making Music From Regions Beyond both the most diverse and collective sound of the band's career.

The production and performance is technically as solid as it gets-nearly perfect. But the lyrics are seemingly more throwaway stories about dark romance. And again, while the band seems to be making good, even great, music, there doesn't seem to be any real fire driving the songs.

In short, fans of Tiger Army will likely love the band's fourth full-length, Music From Regions Beyond, as something that moves the band's sound forward and is still 100 percent Tiger Army. Fans may hail this as the best yet, but for those that have been indifferent to Tiger Army, this will likely do nothing to inspire new interest.