Dead Soul Tribe - A Murder of Crows

I.Feed Part I: Stone by stone

II. Part II:The awakening

III. The Messenger

IV. In a Garden Made of Stones

V. Some Things You Can´t Return

VI. Angels in Vertigo

VII. Regret

VIII. Crows on the Wire

IX. I´m Not Waving

X. Flies

XI. Black Smoke and Mirrors

XII. Time (Bonus Track)

The album runs more that 60 minutes spanning 12 songs, including one BONUS TRACK. The album more aggressive and more progressive than the first DST release, without forsaking the melodic, passionate sense of longing that has become a trademark of their unique style.

The disc also includes an epic track "Black Smoke and Mirrors"- A long awaited acoustic based composition featuring Devon's flute playing.

Devon Grave’s lyrics always capture something poetic in nature. “If it’s true that crows are carrying the souls of dead people into the beyond,” states Devon, “then what happens with the souls of those people with whom the crows didn’t manage to get there?” An interesting question and his inspiration for Dead Soul Tribe’s latest album’s title A Murder Of Crows. Graves is the singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose music is both philosophical and challenging. “Everything I write has a message, an approach to poetry,” he says. “It’s the major function of poetry not to provide answers, but to raise questions - to be thought provoking and to create space for individual interpretations.”

This is exactly what Dead Soul Tribe succeeds in doing with their second album, A Murder Of Crows. Just as thoughts flow through the endless convolutions of the brain of their creator, the songs of the album build up an atmospheric tension, holding the listener with it’s compositional fluidity that lets them swim in a sea of intriguing melodies.

Modern progressive metal must sound that way, but at the same time offer a fresh and sometimes amazing approach. Just imagine Tool with a vague point of orientation, connected with the compositional strength of Psychotic Waltz, (Graves’ previous band which he’s still known under the pen name Buddy Lackey).

With his name change, Graves also made a musical and personal change when he formed Dead Soul Tribe. The debut album of the same name (2002) was a convincing statement of his grand creativity and more than just a glimpse of his actual feelings at the time. “I still like this record very much,” say Graves. “I think, it has its own character style which is unique.” However, the new A Murder Of Crows shows an obvious evolution of the DST sound. “The new songs are far more aggressive. At the same time they are sounding more progressive without losing the groove. The guitars are more dominant and the keyboards were held back more. You can find a few acoustic guitars and more flute parts than on the first record.”

One can also hear that Graves has made experiences as a sound engineer too. A Murder Of Crows makes a great impression with a powerful sound, exposing the dynamics of all the instruments and creating a lasting result. “Since the first album, I have learned a lot as a producer,” Graves admits. “The entire album has a better sound, especially the drums.”

A Murder of Crows also debuts new rhythm guitarist Rolls Kerschbaumer who replaced Volker Wischko before the recording of the new album. Drummer Adel Moustafa and bassist, Roland Ivenz have been there since the beginning and both have made a large contribution to this new release.

“I permanently write songs, to be precise, I already have tracks for a third album. For instance, the songs ‘Black Smoke and Mirrors‘ and ‘Time‘ I wrote at a time when I still was with Psychotic Waltz. ‘Angels Of Vertigo‘ was based on a guitar riff, which I had written for my solo album The Strange Mind Of Buddy Lackey. A few fans probably will recognize it, but it’s slower and a million times more bombastic than the original. Vocals and lyrics are even completely new. On the album there are songs which are linked by a thematic thread. Most of the songs can independently be listened to, but there is a thematic thread between ‘Feed,’ ‘In A Garden Made Of Stones‘ and several other pieces, where I portray the individual life in the cities: ‘A skeleton made of houses, something out of the nothingness will be born. Asleep for a thousand years, taking form. Stone by stone, stone by stone.”