Tin Omen - Forbidden
2003 - Self-released
By Philip Whitehouse
Go to the Tin Omen website.
It's always good to see a local band take off and progress beyond pub gigs and battle of the band competitions, and even more gratifying when you know that the band in question deserves every bit of the success and recognition that they are beginning to gain. The West Midlands' finest industrial band, Tin Omen are a case in point - not too long ago, I was lucky enough to share a stage with them in my old band at the Legends club in Wolverhampton, in front of approximately thirty people. Despite the low attendance, Tin Omen gave their all, and left everyone impressed.
Of course, they have been working hard for around five years now - building their experience as a live act, honing their sound, and in the process, having a track make an appearance on Rad (UK Channel 5 extreme sports show) and staying at number 1 in the MP3.com industrial metal charts for a frankly amazing period of time. And still Tin Omen's star continues to rise - in fact, as I type this, they should have just finished their set supporting the mighty Ministry at the Wolverhampton Civic Hall.
So, now seems the perfect time to give their most recent EP the thorough appraisal it deserves. Forbidden delivers four tracks of goth-tinted industrial metal, with reference points mainly including Nine Inch Nails, the underrated Curve, and Gary Numan. Recorded in the band's own studio, the production naturally suffers, but the quality of the music within shines even through the slightly scratchy, thin sound. Kelly Newton's vocals in particular impress - she never descends into over-dramatic operatic warbling or excessively snarly vocals like so many other female singers do, but delivers a melodic, strong, consistent performance throughout that manages to perfectly compliment both the haunting, trance-like melodicism and the snarling, buzzsaw riffage of the music.
The music itself smoothly and effortlessly glides between ethereal, haunting synths, sinister atmospherics and more punishing, riff-driven sections. 'Muath Muj Ko' washes over the listener, propelled by a near-subliminal, heartbeat-like two note bass line, choir-like synths and reverb-and-wah'd guitars - slipping gently into focus then dissipating like smoke. Contrast this to 'Forbidden', which begins in a similarly understated but more up-tempo manner, building gradually from an electro-melody to an irresistable, dancefloor-flling chorus complete with pumping beat, screeching guitar-work and the 'feel my temptation' vocal refrain.
About the only complaint I have about this release is the production, which is understandably limited due to budget constraints - and even that is only a major niggle, since every element can still be heard pretty clearly, which is admirable considering how densely layered the synths in some of the tracks are. Also, some more up-tempo tracks would have been nice too. These are but minor grievances, however.
I'd love to hear what Tin Omen could do with major label backing and a big producer, however - and since they appear to be on the ascendant, perhaps that wish can come true pretty soon...
Try and get hold of a copy of this, before they're huge... you won't regret it.
8.5/10
2003 - Self-released
By Philip Whitehouse
Go to the Tin Omen website.
It's always good to see a local band take off and progress beyond pub gigs and battle of the band competitions, and even more gratifying when you know that the band in question deserves every bit of the success and recognition that they are beginning to gain. The West Midlands' finest industrial band, Tin Omen are a case in point - not too long ago, I was lucky enough to share a stage with them in my old band at the Legends club in Wolverhampton, in front of approximately thirty people. Despite the low attendance, Tin Omen gave their all, and left everyone impressed.
Of course, they have been working hard for around five years now - building their experience as a live act, honing their sound, and in the process, having a track make an appearance on Rad (UK Channel 5 extreme sports show) and staying at number 1 in the MP3.com industrial metal charts for a frankly amazing period of time. And still Tin Omen's star continues to rise - in fact, as I type this, they should have just finished their set supporting the mighty Ministry at the Wolverhampton Civic Hall.
So, now seems the perfect time to give their most recent EP the thorough appraisal it deserves. Forbidden delivers four tracks of goth-tinted industrial metal, with reference points mainly including Nine Inch Nails, the underrated Curve, and Gary Numan. Recorded in the band's own studio, the production naturally suffers, but the quality of the music within shines even through the slightly scratchy, thin sound. Kelly Newton's vocals in particular impress - she never descends into over-dramatic operatic warbling or excessively snarly vocals like so many other female singers do, but delivers a melodic, strong, consistent performance throughout that manages to perfectly compliment both the haunting, trance-like melodicism and the snarling, buzzsaw riffage of the music.
The music itself smoothly and effortlessly glides between ethereal, haunting synths, sinister atmospherics and more punishing, riff-driven sections. 'Muath Muj Ko' washes over the listener, propelled by a near-subliminal, heartbeat-like two note bass line, choir-like synths and reverb-and-wah'd guitars - slipping gently into focus then dissipating like smoke. Contrast this to 'Forbidden', which begins in a similarly understated but more up-tempo manner, building gradually from an electro-melody to an irresistable, dancefloor-flling chorus complete with pumping beat, screeching guitar-work and the 'feel my temptation' vocal refrain.
About the only complaint I have about this release is the production, which is understandably limited due to budget constraints - and even that is only a major niggle, since every element can still be heard pretty clearly, which is admirable considering how densely layered the synths in some of the tracks are. Also, some more up-tempo tracks would have been nice too. These are but minor grievances, however.
I'd love to hear what Tin Omen could do with major label backing and a big producer, however - and since they appear to be on the ascendant, perhaps that wish can come true pretty soon...
Try and get hold of a copy of this, before they're huge... you won't regret it.
8.5/10
