Photos of Trail of Dead at SXSW 2019 in Austin, TX
Photos of Trail of Dead at Dingwalls in London, U.K. on November 18th, 2014
Photos of Trail of Dead at Lido in Berlin, Germany on October 17th, 2012
Photos of Trail of Dead at Fluxbau in Berlin, Germany on October 17th, 2012
Photos of Trail of Dead at Islington Academy in London, U.K. on April 19th, 2011
Photos of Trail of Dead at O2 Academy in Birmingham, U.K. on April 18th, 2011
Photos of Trail of Dead at Garage in Glasgow, U.K. on April 17th, 2011
Photos of Trail of Dead at Academy 2 in Manchester, U.K. on April 16th, 2011
Photos of Trail of Dead at Electric Ballroom in London, U.K. on April 15th, 2011
Photos of Trail of Dead at Muftahalle in Munich, Germany on April 12th, 2011
Photos of Trail of Dead at Arena in Vienna, Austria on April 10th, 2011
Photos of Trail of Dead at Astra in Berlin, Germany on April 9th, 2011
Photos of Trail of Dead at Ubel und Gefaehrlich in Hamburg, Germany on April 8th, 2011
…And You Know Us By the Trail of Dead have had as many lives as their band name has words, from saviors of indie-rock to orphans from major label, from massive ensemble to four-piece, from headliners to also-rans. However, they’ve always been epic, whether hollowly like 2011’s Tao of the Dead (QRO review) or substantially with 2012’s Lost Songs (QRO review). The latter reestablished their band, their brand – in suitably epic fashion – and that keeps up with their latest, IX.
Trail of Dead let you know that it’s them right from the get-go with growing and epic opener “The Doomsday Book”, and they never look back. Yet the group puts different spins on their grand nature, from ominous (the following “Jaded Apostles”), driving (“A Million Random Digits”), even the instrumentals “How To Avoid Huge Ships” and “Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears”. They’re forthrightly bold on “Lost In the Grand Scheme” and “Sound of the Silk” near the end, as the record should close, but perhaps most interesting and compelling are middle pieces “Lie Without a Liar” and “The Dragonfly Queen”. The former nicely reaches for the stars that are forever out of one’s grasp, while the latter is just great world-weary days gone by.
IX even has a fuzzy afterglow in “Bus Lines”, for a record that needs and deserves one. …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead may be on their umpteenth life, but it’s a well-earned one.
