Tsunami Sea

Spiritbox

I've listened to a couple Spiritbox projects up to this point, and their brand of ultra-polished, groove metal hasn't really wowed me as of yet. I caught really positive discourse online concerning this new record, including a glowing review from Bring Me the Horizon frontman Oli Sykes who said the album redefined what a metal album can be. With that in mind, I opted to give Tsunami Sea a shot. My conclusion... I just don't see what the hype is about, and I fail to see why people are saying this is reinventing the wheel. If people are referring to the prominent incorporation of atmosphere, experimentation with electronics, using modulated vocal processing, or nightmarish guitar passages, I would argue that none of this stuff is novel within metal. Bands like vildjharta, Frontierer, and Deftones, just to name a few, have incorporated these elements to much more unique ends.

Of course, having a unique style isn't the only criteria for good music. However, Tsunami Sea doesn't really offer much of anything to me. For one, I'm not really a fan of this style of production. The guitars are so distorted and so detuned that they often just sound like mush. There's no clarity or definition that helps bring out the finer details in the riffs, leading them to fade into the overall heavy atmosphere of the tracks. The drums are cuttingly punchy, but at the expense of all the human feel. In addition, the drum arrangements are depressingly drab. I understand the need to serve the song, but is it too much to ask for at least one impressive drum fill or one groove that wasn't the most obvious choice at each moment? On top of that, there is zero dynamic range. Even in the 'softer' choruses that feature softer vocals and cleaner guitars, it still sounds very loud. To create that perception of changing dynamics, when transitioning from a verse to the chorus for example, the band frequently resorts to cutting all instrumentation for a moment before coming back in with a thunderous explosion. They employ this so often that it becomes as predictable and cliché as a dubstep drop or a tacky breakdown callout.

With the production and instrumentation being as bland as it is, the responsibility of selling these songs unfairly falls on (vocalist) Courtney LaPlante's shoulders. When it comes to the harsh vocals, I have no notes. LaPlante is an absolute monster in this department and it's her relentlessly feral delivery that made tracks like Fata Morgana, Soft Spine, and No Loss, No Love standout, if only by a toe. The clean singing, however, went the way of just about everything else on this record. LaPlante's delivery plays a very gentle foil to her harsh screams. It works in the verses, but once we get to the chorus, the vocals call for something a little more powerful. Her melodies also felt terribly uninspired, leading to one forgettable chorus after another. The only exceptions I found were the title track which I thought had a pretty catchy melody, and the closing track Deep End which was surprisingly uplifting thanks to her soaring vocals.

While this all seems pretty negative, my stance on Tsunami Sea is fairly impartial. There's perhaps some unfortunate errs in judgement, like all the formant shifting on LaPlante's vocals on Crystal Roses, or the decision to go back to a boring chorus after having one of the most cathartic releases of anger on A Haven With Two Faces. But I wouldn't say anything on this record is truly offensive. It really just comes down to personal preference, and this particular style of metal unfortunately doesn't speak to me.