…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – “The Century Of Self”

Rating: 9/10

Austin, Texas-based …And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead has never been the silent type. After negotiations with former label Interscope went south, they made it known that they had found a new home: their own.

As part of the newly-fashioned Justice Records, “The Century Of Self” explores freedoms and reaches plateaus first attained in the band’s universally-acclaimed indie rock opus, “Source Tags & Codes,” released in 2002. Together, founders Conrad Keely, Jason Reece and Kevin Allen have hearkened back to that time period while maintaining many of the elements found in their two previous outings, which received lukewarm receptions at best.

Don’t be mistaken – there is nothing “lukewarm” about this gem. While far from the band’s crown jewel, “Century” is absolutely the breath of fresh air the group needs to reclaim its stake at the top of the heap. “Isis Unveiled” swoops up listeners in an epic-sounding, epic-scale whirlwind of heavy guitar licks and marching drum beats while the piano medley and vocals on “Inland Sea” perfectly harmonize, making it stand above the rest, if only slightly.

To listen to this record from start to finish is similar to reading a history text cover-to-cover. Overflowing with insight of the ancient and mythical properties, the instrumentations fit the lyrics just as the lyrics fit the album artwork, which is a masterpiece in and of itself.

Just flipping through the pages of the song booklet echoes an era where sword fights were the most common method of solving a quarrel and four-armed shirtless men with lion heads existed. At least that’s what the cover art, hand-drawn by Keely in blue ballpoint pen, has you believe. Each portrait that adorns the jacket sleeve is as intricately detailed and breathtaking as the 13 songs which make up the actual content of the thing.

Certainly not the gold standard in its discography, Trail of Dead does manage to right the ship they seemed to have run aground on its past two releases.

“The Century Of Self,” regardless, aims high and scores, restoring the band to its hard-rocking roots. That restoration process, unique in its own right, has afforded the individual members a new approach to creating brilliant music: their own.