TRAIL OF TEARS - "DISCLOSURE IN RED"
When I listened to "When Silence Cries", Trail of Tears' debut demo, I already knew they were a promising band. With interest I was looking forward to the release of their first CD, and it was well worth the wait.
"Disclosure in Red" contains the three tracks present on their demo as well as seven further cuts. What we have here is, basically, Theatre of Tragedy squared. Whereas ToT's Liv-Kristine sings beautifully, her voice lacks power and courage. Not so with Trail of Tears' female vocalist. I heard she's a trained singer, and that's easy to believe. Her voice enchants, mesmerises, captures, soars, wails. Add to that the great contrast with the male grunt vocals, and it's thoroughly enjoyable. Musically, the songs also have a lot to offer. "When Silence Cries", "Swallowed Tears" and "Enigma of the Absolute" are classic tracks...and who would be able to not instantly buy an album that has a song entitled "Mournful Pigeon" on it?
The demo was cool, "Disclosure in Red" is even cooler.
RK
Written July 1999