MURDER BY DEATH “Red Of Tooth And Claw”
For all the band member changes and label hopping that MURDER BY DEATH seem to do, they sure are a stable songwriting force. Over the course of what now amounts to four full-lengths, the Bloomington, Indiana-based band has been wildly consistent without hampering growth in any way. Their latest, Red Of Tooth And Claw, is an honest extension of 2006′s In Bocca Al Lupo in the sense that the songs are once again extremely well-structured, making for a nice collection of concise, attention-capturing songs.
For those unfamiliar with MURDER BY DEATH, they’ve made a career off of writing dark, Western-tinged rock songs. Adam Turla’s low, daunting vocals (seemingly always compared to JOHNNY CASH) and Sarah Balliet’s diverse cello playing have long given MURDER BY DEATH the identity necessary to exist. The two surely keep Claw afloat, but to count out the entire group would be a serious flaw. “Fuego!” is the kind of song that you’d hope a band that has been together for so long could write. The chemistry is wildly apparent, and although the tone is ominous like so many other MURDER BY DEATH songs, it offers hope in the end in the form of an up-tempo rhythm where Turla kind of, sort of stretches his vocals. It’s a sound that needs to be heard.
While the beginning of the album doesn’t pack as big of a punch as In Bocca‘s “Boy Decide,” it’s still made up of a patch of quality songs in “Comin’ Home,” “Ball And Chain,” and “Rum Brave.” The middle of the disc, however, is where the band’s beauty is displayed. “A Second Opinion” is built on a lone guitar riff that gradually builds with other instruments; the build-up couldn’t be more natural, and it results in a magical display of both restraint and relief. “Steal Away” is a more propelling follow-up song where Turla’s clever way of working words is showcased, and “Ash” is, put simply, a quality example of pristine yet original songwriting. The song’s lyric of “I knew I couldn’t do it again” could also be a follow-up to the earlier “Rum Brave,” which seemed to be a narrative about a man sending others to their doom. As is consistent with past albums, much of the lyrical content seems to follow a concept revolving around revenge, death, and battling demons.
Writing and concluding anything about MURDER BY DEATH is quite a task, at least on a formal level, because all one really wants to say is that “the record is amazing, so go buy it.” There is no doubt in my mind they’ve written a successful follow-up to an album that was already the best of their career so far. I really feel that MURDER BY DEATH is a band worth investing time in because of they are unafraid of change, and they have shown that they constantly deliver, album after album. Although labels and band members come and go, if the core of this band sticks together, they have given me no reason to ever doubt their ability to write great records. Red Of Tooth And Claw is certainly one of them.
Vagrant
