Tremonti
Cauterize
FRET12
Release Date: Out Now
Review by Paul Southwell
The second effectively solo album from celebrated Alter Bridge and Creed guitarist Mark Tremonti is not an adventure into self-indulgence but a deeper exploration of his appreciation of heavy metal influence combined with his melodic approach to arrangements. Produced by Michael Baskette and mastered by Grammy award winner Ted Jensen, whose experience ranges from huge mainstream acts to uncompromising metal releases, the album pushes standard hard rock audience expectations whilst still retaining a tight, sonic clarity without straying too far into the musical unknown.
Tremonti himself takes on lead vocals and guitar duties as well as composing the material. On rhythm guitar he utilises Creed touring rhythm guitarist Eric Freidman and drummer Garrett Whitlock delivers some powerful drumming work. Alter Bridge’s bassist Brian Marshall who played on the last album is replaced by Wolfgang Van Halen and he certainly performs admirably.
Opening track Radical Change kicks off with an early Metallica approach rhythmically speaking that soon moves into a melodic chorus with sustained vocals. Any brittle guitar sound changes to a clean chorus and half time middle section before a fluid, expressive guitar solo, which then returns to fast riffing. To some extent, this method crops up on multiple tracks but the amount of dynamics and production involved adds variety so that on repeated listens, many tracks will offer further sonic interest. A later album track in Tie the Noose is a great example of a dense mix and atmospheric flourishes behind a driving, almost thrash metal rhythm guitar figure. Similarly, the title track segues from a snare hammering introduction into an openly arranged and more spatial verse to then push a solid chorus.
The first half of the album has well put together transitions between heavier material and more moody sections where guitar tones swing between heavy, speed metal delivery to cleaner, reverb effected approaches. Vocally, there are naturally elements of Alter Bridge but also a timbre on par with Slipknot’s vocalist Corey Taylor, which must have inspired the galloping thrash and groove of Arm Yourself. The ballad Dark Trip has an Opeth approach by using distorted guitars over repetitive yet hypnotic rhythms as chords build and open strings chime to power chords before ushering in a soaring guitar solo.
For the second half of the album, more spatial sound techniques let the vocals push the melody. Lyrically, there is an evident maturity within songs such as Another Heart and Fall Again offering a conviction or assurance that only life experiences of surviving at an internationally successful level can offer convincingly. The latter track uses Wolfgang’s bass guitar volume swells at start and finish points thus book-ending a well-constructed song. The final track, Providence succinctly offers an acoustic introduction before the song changes into a harmonised guitar heavy vibe which becomes suitably epic and also uses an array of production techniques to create an interesting musical flow. This album is a highly recommended piece of work that should please anyone into hard rock, metal, fast guitar playing and even commercial material that has a substantially metallic edge to it.
