Mistakes and Regrets could have been a big hit, and the use of creepy interludes sets a perfect mood for the album. Totally Natural's tranquil to it's catharsis of noise leaves me in awe everytime and A Perfect Teenhood's wall of white noise is another highlight. While the band may have a huge Sonic Youth influence, they are in no ways a rip off of the band. Trail of Dead has a very original sound and I can't wait to see what lies ahead for the band.


Intense   September 15, 2002
Paul H. (USA)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful

I'm surprised by the reviewer who says that Trail Of Dead cannot capture the intensity of their live shows on record. I saw them live recently, and they are still one of the most incredible bands I've ever seen live (and this was probably one of their tamer performances too). But I do think that Madonna captures the intensity of their live shows. Madonna is a lot harsher, chaotic, and noisy than their brilliant Source Tags & Codes, but the melodies and musicianship make for one of the best releases of 1999. Trail of Dead have been compared to Sonic Youth on this record, but they are in no way ripping SY off. Trail of Dead have more of an upfront hardcore-punk sound, are much angrier, and have less of an "avant-garde" or "art rock" slant. Again, the combination of melody and noise is brilliant; I was really suprised how intense the band sounds on this record. A few songs do fall apart ("Totally Natural" and the must-hear-to-believe "A Perfect Teenhood"), and the rest are played with much vigor and passion. The strings that are oh-so-prevalent on ST&C pop up here and there (including on some eerie interludes) and do seem to hint at what these guys were headed into for the future. And the album's closer ("Sigh Your Children") is so gorgeous, I wish it would have gone on much longer (two minutes is not enough). Trust me, see them live and buy the album. You'll be getting your money's worth both ways.


Thankfully, "Hard Rock" isn't what it used to be   May 22, 2001
Dirk Hugo (Cape Town, South Africa)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

At a time when noisy rock music is supposedly at it's lowest commercial ebb, one of the more brash and energetic proponents of the genre grabs a fair amount of attention. Instrumental comparisons to mid-era Sonic Youth (EVOL, Daydream Nation) are accurate, but Trail Of Dead drive the chiming, harmonic edge of their guitars to a new hedonistic extreme and provide a substantial challenge to the more dance orientated "alternative" acts when measured on the Richter scale. Some of the songs are weighed down by a rhythmic and vocal sensibility from the punk era, but when the Trail Of Dead take a more expansive and sonically adventurous turn, the results are most invigorating.


an instant classic - I hope they never get popular   December 29, 2000
Michael Heminger (Pardeeville, WI)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Hey! HEY!! Where are the soundbytes???

Possibly my vote for best album of 1999, "Madonna" has less to do with Ms. Ciccone than with the mythic lure of the divine, as manifested by these four energetic dervishes in washes of dense guitar noise and whirling drums. The production here is more immediate than their debut (although never as 'warm' as their privately issued demo cassette which will rearrange your furniture if you're not careful!) and has a more textured feel.

"Mistakes and Regrets" wraps despair in a screeching yet almost angelic guitar veneer, culminating in crashing, galloping drums. "Totally Natural" is less inspired, and devolves into a blatantly Sonic Yoop spin in mid-stride. But "Claire De Lune', ruminating over lost love and hopes, takes on an infectuous 3/4 time spin, as much a lament as a lullaby.

"Madonna" lacks some of the muscle found on their debut, but acts as one frictionless piece, flowing imperceptibly from one title to the next. In the end, "A Perfect Teenhood" wraps things up as it usually does onstage, when giant amplified-rubber-band guitars make repeated glacial headbutts into oblivion (or, in a live context, a pile of rubble).

Sure, these guys listened to "Daydream Nation" a few times too many, but at least someone is carrying the flag again.