The Red and Black

Issue date: 3/19/09 Section: Out & About

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…AND YOU WILL KNOW US BY THE TRAIL OF DEAD

The Century of Self

Using Trail of Dead's previous release as a lens - the sprawling, scattershot mess "So Divided" - "The Century of Self" is an unquestionable triumph for the art-rock sextet.
The noisy, almost breathless quality of Trail of Dead's music that made it famous is back in place here, resulting in the band's most dynamic set of tunes since 2002's "Source Tags & Codes."
But "The Century of Self" never reaches the high-water mark set by that masterpiece, as the bloated, proggy excess of their more recent work still rears its head in the dense 13-track landscape.
The end result is a record full of surprises but admittedly hit-or-miss.
"Isis Unveiled" employs swift guitar heroics and a vibe akin to Radiohead's "Electioneering" that burst out of the speakers. But a plodding mid-section hinders it from reaching epic proportions.
Fortunately, several cuts evade the overindulgence that has plagued much of Trail of Dead's recent work and even sound refreshing: "The Far Pavilions," "Fields of Coal" and "Halcyon Days" are all scorching, punk-fueled songs that operate at breakneck speed.
Trail of Dead's reinstated musical energy is enough to propel the first portion of "The Century of Self," but the more introspective latter half feels flat and ponderous.

VERDICT: It's far from perfect and lags in spots. But all things considered, it's a complex, enthralling listen and certainly a tremendous improvement for Trail of Dead.

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