Rolo Tomassi – ‘Grievances’ [Review]
Four albums into their career, you might expect Rolo Tomassi to chill things out and give themselves a breather for once. But have they?
…Kind of, actually.
Grievances gets going with Estranged, an idiosyncratically Tomassi amalgam of hectic skin-beating barrages, stabbing and churning guitars, and a relatively low-key section that brings to mind dark alleys and glistening knives rather than sunshine and fluffiness. Raumdeuter takes an atmospheric turn in the direction of post-rock, lifting the listener up into low-level stormclouds and introducing a taste of the quirky electronica that remains a fundamental reference point with these guys. From here, it’s a long, turbulent, and joyous journey punctuated by emotively low-key moments.
Even amidst the hurricane conditions of tracks like The Embers, Stage Knives, and seven-minute epic closer All That Has Gone Before, Rolo Tomassi always manage to sound like they’re having fun. Few metal- and hardcore-rooted bands give themselves permission to play around to the degree that Tomassi do – and that fact serves to make this band stick out all the more prominently. Cathartic and grin-inducing moments abound throughout Grievances, adding up to a truly inimitable experience.
In short, Rolo Tomassi are so sick they should be hospitalised immediately – and Grievances is a dark, harsh, and ultimately beautiful album.
TMMP RATING: 94% (Essential Listening!)
Links / Listen
Rolo Tomassi on Facebook and Twitter.
Follow TMMP via Twitter and my brand new Facebook page for more from the world of world-class music! If you’re a regular reader, thanks for the support! Don’t stop, and keep going!