And You Will Know Us By The Trail of the Dead

From the earlier raucous work of their self-titled debut and Madonna to the more accessible apocalyptic noise of Source Tags and Codes and their newest album Worlds Apart, …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead have consistently specialized in soundtracking the breaking of the seventh seal. For those of you less schooled in scripture, that means they make music fit for the end of the world, whether it is an interior existence troubled by nightmares and doubt or an exterior reality continually plagued by environmental disaster, neocolonialism and unending Wars on Whatever.

That may sound as if this band manufactures the unlistenable, but it’s quite the opposite. Trail of Dead affairs, whether on disc or onstage, are notoriously addictive, exploratory and jarring experiences, ones that you are unlikely to forget. More importantly, the brainchild of Hawaiian island childhood pals Conrad Keely and Jason Reece isn’t simply interested in sound, but also sight, which is why the visual component of their body of work is as engaging as its auditory vehicle. It’s about the art, baby, and Trail of Dead know better than most that the game isn’t over when the tracks are laid down. Bands that last are the ones that provide a rewarding sensorium to their listeners, and as students of history, art and music, Keely and Reece are more than aware of their duties to their public and their own refined sense of creativity. Which is why MTV, bling culture and global materialism are attacked in Worlds Apart with unrestrained ardor and cacophony.