Five reasons to check out … And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead
Credit to Author: Shawn Conner| Date: Wed, 15 Jan 2020 19:00:35 +0000
… And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead
When: Jan. 20 at 8 p.m.
Where: Fox Cabaret
Tickets: $20 at ticketweb.ca, and various record stores
1. X: The Godless Void & Other Stories. The band’s first album since 2014’s IX, X: Into The Godless Void (release date: Jan. 17) is heralded by two singles, Don’t Look Down and The Godless Void. Rollingstone.com calls the former “a bustling rock track carried by rushing drums and fuzzy guitars.”
2. 25 years and counting. Formed in Austin in 1994, … And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead (Trail of Dead for short) has been around for a quarter of a century, although you could say that the band was on semi-hiatus for five years while co-founder Conrad Keely lived in Cambodia. In 2018 he moved back to Austin to record and tour once again with Trail of Dead bandmate Jason Reece.
3. Cover art. Keely is also the band’s designated cover artist, and his fantastic, elaborate work for albums like The Century of Self and the upcoming Into the Godless Void make a visit to the merch table unavoidable and exciting.
4. “Everything rock music aspires to be.” Music publication Pitchfork gave the band’s 2002 album, Source Tags and Codes, a rare 10 out of 10, saying: “Dense, beautiful, intricate, haunting, explosive, and dangerous, this is everything rock music aspires to be: intense, incredible songs arranged perfectly and performed with skill and passion.”
5. “A monster behind the kit.” Trail of Dead has long been known for its wild, chaotic live shows, and the magic is still there according to reviews of some early 2019 concerts; one reviewer called Reece “a total monster behind that kit, one of the most powerful I’ve seen in my 25 years of gig-going.” (Both Keely and Reece play guitar, sing, and drum.) The Vancouver date is part of a brief West Coast tour that features a five-piece lineup. Northern Light Show contributes visuals.