The Snake, The Cross, The Crown - Mander Salis
Rating
RIYL
RadioheadThe Weakerthans
The Juliana Theory
New Amsterdams
Pink Floyd
Flickerstick
Label
Equal VisionTracklist
1. An Honest Misappropriation Of Funds2. Empires
3. Gates Of Dis
4. A Gathering Of Shades
5. On The Threshold Of Eternity
6. The Sun Tells The Moon
7. A Brief Intermission
8. The Laughing Man
9. Echolalia
10. The Fields Of Ius
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For weeks I had been hearing from various decoy staffers that I had to check out "Mander Salis" the new album from The Snake, The Cross, The Crown. I kept hearing the phrase "Its a really chill album." Being from the midwest, I'm not immediately up to date on the latest lingo floating around. Usually east/west coast people are saying words that I have to decifer, and since I wasn't sure what exactly "chill" meant, I decided to investigate how exactly this album was "chill."
When I first listened to the disc I was struck by the laid back feel. The Snake, The Cross, The Crown play the kind of music that makes you feel all warm inside. I know that sounds like a strange thing, but the album really makes you feel at ease, at peace. The basic sound of TSTCTC is a real hybrid. They can rock out with the best of them, putting out rock gems like "Gates Of Dis" and the opener "An Honest Misapproptiation of Funds," but then pull a complete 180 and give you the alt country/folk sound of The Weakerthans or New Amsterdams in songs like "On The Threshold Of Eternity." Most bands couldn't pull this off, but singer Kevin Jones' voice is so dynamic that it sounds just right in whatever genre the band choses to be in.
This is a very unique, genre defying band, but at times The Snake, The Cross, The Crown stray from their focus. Songs like "Echoalia" meander aimlessly with no real form or shape to it for a long time before any real molody takes shape. There is some meat to it, but at over 9:00 in length it is the one "skip" song on the album.
Mander Salis is a deep album, one that took me several listens to full digest, but thats a good thing. Each time through you catch a little something more that makes this such an enjoyable listen. TSTCTC is so diverse, covering so many different genres that this disc will have wide spread appeal.
So did I figure out what exactly "chill" meant? I'm not sure, but if they meant "Mander Salis" is one of the best, most unique releases of the year, then it is definately chill.
JohnnyL
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