Austin Sound

…And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead are currently traipsing around Europe in promotion of their new album, The Century of Self, and while in the UK stopped by the courtyard of Fly.TV to film a few songs. These sessions are generally supposed to be acoustic, and, God bless ‘em, the ToD boys tried, but still managed to scavenger some cables and amps. Still, the more stripped down versions of the new “Bells of Creation” and, especially, “Source Tags & Codes” are worth checking out. You can watch those two below, and also watch them perform “Luna Park” on the site.

Yesterday Stereogum premiered the new video from …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead. While we really liked the sextet’s new album, Century of Self, heralding it as an awesome return to form for the band after a few misdirected years, this video for “Isis Unveiled” kinda sucks. Aside from the disorienting stop-motion filming technique, the video really doesn’t do anything except present a kind of obnoxious stream of consciousness of images (you know, the usual war and destruction type stuff) against Keely’s over-dramatic, demonic-aping face. It’s the kind of annoying emo side of Trail of Dead that kind of turns us off from their destructive awesomeness. But check it out for yourself below:

Century of Self is a statement on several fronts for Trail of Dead. First off, the band’s sixth album was released on their own label, Richter Scale (with help from Justice Records), and no doubt some of that sense of renewed vitality that spikes Century is due to being free from major Interscope. More importantly, however, is the statement made by the music, which confidently unleashes an epic storm. Even at their wildest and most cathartic moments, the sextet remains firmly in control, intensely layering the fury and interweaving calmer moments that nonetheless pack just as much of an emotional punch.

…And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead Record Execs, apparently. After 2006’s So Divided left fans and critics, well, so divided, the group parted ways with Interscope and have now decided to do the indie thing on their own, creating their own label. Called Richter Scale Records, it will be home to ToD’s new LP, which is scheduled roughly for release in January. The imprint is apparently in association with Justice Records, and as of right now, Trail of Dead don’t have any other bands signed on to the label.

Best of all is this quote from Conrad Keely to Billboard, saying that the move will help the band “to seek the creative freedom envisioned by the founding fathers of our great nation, immune from the tyranny of the corporate ogre.” Ah yes, let us not forget the often overlooked treatise by Thomas Paine, Rights of Indie Bands.

1/10/07
Wow, Trial of Dead really outdid themselves with this one! The group recently released the video for “Naked Sun” on Yahoo Music. It unfortunately hasn’t been youtubed yet, so you’ll have to go Yahoo, make sure your junk works correctly, and then watch it there.

But the video is worth tracking down as it seems to uncover the real threat of illegal immigration to the nation – the power of immigrants to convert right-wing gun-toting minutemen into trippy desert dancers. Behold the Power Ranger-like special effects! Behold the ominous turned ridiculous! Hopefully Bush will address this new threat in his speech tonight.

11/27/06
Trail of Dead, who’s recently released album So Divided has been receiving excellent reviews, is offering fans the opportunity to remix the song “Wasted State of Mind” in a contest through ACIDplanet. You can download the stems from the master recording at www.acidplanet.com and get to work representing your own twisted state of mind. The band will apparently be selecting their favorite remix themselves and aside from the fame and notoriety that will undoubtedly roll your way with such recognition, there’s also a pretty nice batch of prizes for the winner.

According to ACIDplanet, the grand prize winner will receive merchandise from Interscope Records, ACID Pro software, a Sony Sound Series “Drums from the Big Room Box Set” and “Rock Shop Box Set” as well as a Sony NW-A1200 Mp3 player. Not a bad haul if you’ve been waiting to try out your remixing skills anyway. The contest officially began on Nov. 22, so you better get moving. All entries must be fully uploaded by 12:00 am Pacific time on Wednesday, January 3. You can check out the full list of rules and information here.

Everyone’s favorite Austin band: …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead was formed in late 1994 by singers/guitarists/drummers Jason Reece and Conrad Keely, longtime friends who originally met in Hawaii before both settled in the perennial indie hotbed of Olympia, WA. Each formed their first band in 1993 soon after moving. Keely started a band called Benedict Gehlen that only lasted a year. Nancyville was Keely’s next project, though it also was short lived. Reece started with Honeybucket and then formed Mukilteo Fairies while living in Olympia.

Unhappy with the northwest, the two relocated together to Austin, Tx, and played their first shows as You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead, eventually adding both the conjunction and the ellipsis (for effect) as well as recruiting guitarist Kevin Allen and bassist/sampler Neil Busch. After issuing a live cassette on the local Golden Hour label, the group — already legendary in indie circles for their anarchic concert sets — released their self-titled full-length debut on Trance Syndicate in early 1998. Following the label’s collapse, Trail of Dead moved to Merge to issue Madonna in the fall of 1999. After signing to Interscope, the band issued the formidable Source Tags & Codes (my personal favorite) in 2002, which received immediate critical acclaim and made many critics’ year-end top 10 lists, followed by the Secrets of Elena’s Tomb EP in 2003. Worlds Apart, a prog-rock-inspired epic, arrived early in 2005, while their latest, So Divided, was in stores by November 2006.

photo by Courtney Chavanell

8/31/06
The local buzz surrounding the folk-rock tribe of Brothers and Sisters has been pretty intense this summer – and justifiably so. But it’s about to get a national push as they have been slated to open for Trail of Dead on their extensive North American tour. They’ll be following the Trail from the end of October all the way through December, including their dates at Emo’s on November 22 and 23.

The choice of Brothers and Sisters for the opening slot certainly offers a useful word-association for remembering the lineup: Brothers and Sisters, Blood Brothers, �And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead. Somehow, though, Baltimore’s new-wavey punks Celebration are thrown into the mix too, so already our mnemonic is falling apart.

8/11/06

In what may be the most appropriate pairing of the fall tour season, disillusioned proggers …And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead are teaming up with the Seattle-based Blood Brothers for a North American onslaught. Things are likely to get gloriously messy folks.

The hardcore dance punk of the Blood Brothers is a nice compliment to Trail of Dead’s grand but gritty rock, and to accommodate the demand for carnage two dates have been set for the hometown fans: November 22 and 23 at Emo’s. Both bands have new albums slated for release in early October that they will be touting along the way.