Teeth Of The Sea are a multi limbed monster that spans the great divide of post-rock, noise-rock, ambient, prog, space rock and fuck-knows. Hell, when I caught their blistering set at the 2013 Liverpool Psych fest they turned the place into a fuckin’ rave.
Their 2013 album Master was widely regarded as a superlative, flawless record by, well everyone really. Even my boss likes it and he listens to Clapton.
Following up an album like Master can’t be easy, so let’s see how they’ve done with their latest, Highly Deadly Black Tarantula…
‘All My Venom’ starts with deep horror-show vibes, battle drums and warehouse acoustics. Ah yes, the trumpet. The Teeth Of The Sea trumpet. Essays will be written about that trumpet. You may have heard trumpets but you never heard this one… Here it sways a doleful lament. Ice pick guitar gives way to corpulent, barricade-ramming guitar. Industrial machinery thumps. 90s dance-y electro. Metal-ish screaming vocals. Oh you crazy boys… it’s good to have you back…
‘Animal Manservant’ starts like an arcade shoot ’em up. More effects-shovelled metal vocals (don’t make a habit of it though, boys). Bass rumbles in. All told, this sounds like overambitious roadworks. Then the trumpet; to sprinkle glitter on a pool of perfectly aligned sick. Drums put you underneath the start of the Grand National. Teeth Of The Sea are working towards the euphoria point.
‘Field Punishment’ spews narrow electronica; Blade Runner and Fad Gadget. Surgical tools glisten. The bass gets funky, we’re not a million from Chemical Brothers, believe it or not. Keys drop in and out; digital heaven. Strap in folks, it’s time to dance as the ingredients are welded together to make a brutalist rave epic. A hypnotic, digital, subdural amalgamation of everything you need to have a fine time. Proof of this songs’ glory? At 6 minutes, this is way too short. They could crank this out for 30 minutes and keep everyone happy…
‘Have You Ever Held A Bird Of Prey’ is the sound of a hundred parakeets being forced through an Event Horizon. This is the noise they used to brainwash captured scientists with in the 60s.
‘Phonogene’ is the test card from Play School, directly from the fourth circle of hell
‘Love Theme From 1984’. This is gonna hurt. The song swims in under an electro-pop banner and a jaunty guitar. You’re fooling no one boys. After 4 minutes the atmosphere changes to a western gone sour. The sensation of dread slowly manifests. The bass draws your attention, like an enemy drawing into focus on the horizon. The slow march of death.
Drained. Emotionally and physically.
Play it friends, play it loud! They’ll loosen your fillings while you dance…
Let’s not beat around the bush. Teeth Of The Sea are fucking incredible.
https://teethofthesea.bandcamp.com/album/highly-deadly-black-tarantula-2
colourhorizon 