Hailing from London, Teiger are a 3-piece art rock band dealing in lush atmospheric sounds, elements of psychedelia and occasional metallic explosions. The results, mastered by the legendary David Castillo, are utterly enthralling, as kaleidoscopic as the gorgeous album artwork, and gloriously unique. It’s not an album that grabs you quickly, the band leading you by the hand into a world that is all of their own making, but invest the time, and you’ll find this to be one of the year’s most worthwhile releases.
Opening number, The Crawl, effectively introduces the album, without giving too much away about what’s still to come. Mixing the instrumental post rock of Mogwai with 90s alt rock sensibilities, it’s a strong scene setter, showcasing a band unafraid to take risks and explore their influences. Things take a left turn, however, with follow up Sahara, which harks back to Grace Slick and Jefferson Airplane, the rolling thunder of Jon Steele’s toms underpinning a strong acoustic melody, all of which creates a hypnotic backdrop for Talie Rose Eigeland’s brilliantly expressive vocals. The album continues to beguile the listener, with the slow burning Come and Find Me casting a nod in the direction of The Afghan Whigs, as Talie delivers a smoky, soulful vocal. It’s a wonderfully uncluttered sound the band offer, the songs taking on a spontaneous aspect rarely heard in modern recordings, with the result that you find yourself waiting to hear where the band will take you next, as if they’re playing live right there in your living room. As a case in point, the aptly titled Slow Burningemerges from an initially looped riff, slowly building until the band wrongfoot the listener again, throwing elements of Damnation-era Opeth unexpectedly into the mix. After so mesmerising a piece, the first half concludes with Splinter, a dynamic track that twists and turns with unexpected urgency, the gritty guitar set against Phillip Elridge-Smith’s throbbing bass. By the track’s conclusion, the guitar and drums have slowly faded away, leaving only the ominous pulse of the bass as evidence the band were there at all.
Opening the second half of the album, the subtle acoustic work of Vendetta paves the way for a song that slowly meanders to a conclusion of rolling thunder. In contrast, Hydra is a surprisingly direct rocker that puts Talie’s lovely voice front and centre, before allowing a succession of increasingly urgent riffs to crash against the bedrock of Jon’s percussion. It’s followed by the pulsating title track, another piece that takes inspiration from Tool, but in a manner that feels spontaneous rather than meticulously plotted. Surprisingly heavy, it has a crackling energy that’s all its own, and yet the best is still to come. With the album heading towards its conclusion, a gentle piano motif provides the introduction to the wonderful Sunrise, a fluid piece that roams at will across a range of genres, from jazz to progressive rock and back. With every track on the album an absolute gem, Sunrise still manages to surprise with its breathtaking scope and, were you to need one track to demonstrate this band’s absolute mastery, this would be it. The album’s closer, arriving far too soon, is the beautifully laid back The Thinnest Wall – a perfect conclusion to a near flawless album. From Talie’s haunting vocals to Jon’s deft, inventive percussion, it’s a masterpiece and it leaves the listener with no doubts that Teiger are something very special indeed.
Like all great bands, Teiger require a little time and a little patience to get the best from their wonderfully multifaceted music. The album itself really needs to be heard in one sitting, the three-piece taking you on a journey from the instrumental scene setter that is The Crawl through to the absolutely mesmerising finale of Sunrise and The Thinnest Wall. With each piece building upon what has gone before, it is an album that flows wonderfully, and the band are equally at ease jamming on heavier elements that hint at a love of Tool and Opeth, as they on pieces that ripple with the sensitivity of post rock and the spontaneity of jazz. At the start of this self-titled effort I was merely curious, by the end I was utterly hooked, and I cannot wait to see what this talented and genuinely artistic trio do next. 9.5/10
