CoC : Red Tide - Expressions : Review

Red Tide - _Expressions_
by: Brian Meloon (not rated)

This is interesting. I guess this most comfortably goes under the label "progressive metal," but it certainly doesn't sound like most "prog metal" bands (i.e. Queensryche, Fates Warning, etc.) It's sitting on the border between hard rock and metal, with a healthy scoop of jazz influence. It's mostly mid-tempo, jazzy metal, fairly melodic but not overly so. The music varies quite a bit though, from a heavy Biohazard-like sound to light jazz, a la Cynic, and just about everything in between. It's pretty involved stuff, but not overly technical or complex. The playing is good, especially the dense drumming of Justin Foley, and Andre Otero's bass work, which is impressive even though he is a little low in the mix at times. They stay together well, but occasionally they sound a little sloppy, as Atheist does. The compositions flow pretty well, avoiding standard song form, but not overcompensating with a lot of unnecessary technical twiddling (which is too bad, in my opinion). The production is good for a demo, with some noticeable glitches, but nothing that really dramatically reduces the enjoyment of the music. The main weakness, though, are the vocals. Jeff (Wu, vocals and guitars) sings in a half-spoken, half-sung style without a lot of range, at times smooth, and other times fairly harsh. Sometimes they work well, but other times they don't, though not taking away too much from the music. Check this out if you're into lighter jazzy metal.

Contact: RED TIDE, PO Box 1434, Avon, CT, USA, 06001

(article published 1/10/1995)

ALBUMS
12/8/1997	B Meloon	7	Red Tide - Vicious Circle

DEMOS
7/6/1997	B Meloon	4	Red Tide - Hybrid