There is nothing like the feeling you get as you unwrap a CD, slide it into the player, and this huge wave of music pours out of the speakers, drenching your vehicle and your ears with unexpected delight. After hearing a few MP3 tracks from the Tintin web site, I knew these guys had what I’ve been craving in local music.
Sometimes you can get more attention with whispers than with screams. Neal Williams, the singer and bassist for the Boulder Trio, taps into this method with a style that sounds like he’s about to reveal some deep, dark secrets. The contrast of moonwalk echoes, bubbling bass and combustible guitars takes Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound to another planet. Tracks such as “Alternate” will peak your curiosity into checking out their live set, picturing the audience pull themselves away from trivial conversations and drink orders and surrender to their sonic tornado.
Irony plays a part on “False Attack” as Williams’ velvet voice sings, “You talk so loud/You talk so loud/I can’t even hear the outside sounds.” And it’s other peeks into the human condition that makes “Reeling From” one of my favorite tracks, “We all sin together/And we all sin apart/Off the diving blocks in false starts,” followed tightly by fiery guitar riffs that accentuate the character of the song’s reeling emotions.
Along with another local band CD reviewed this week, The Very Hush Hush, Tintin is at the center of a rising pool of talent here in Colorado, musicians that make us proud to call this our home. These sounds that stream from local music venues prove that not all Coloradoans were socks and sandals. Not all of us line up at the box office the second String Cheese Incident goes on sale, with a lump in our pocket that resembles the shape of a hacky sack. And because of bands like Tintin, we don’t need to travel to either of the coasts when we have this level of music at our disposal. This one’s staying in my CD for a while, that’s for sure.
