On Roscoe Tripp’s upcoming offering, the five-song A Cage Made of Tin, the band dives deep into a refreshing indie rocking sound, leaning heavily into moody expressions of guitar, synth, and other ambiance. Lead singer Greg Fine has relinquished the reins of one-and-only songwriter, eschewing his lone wolf status for thoughtful collaboration among his bandmates. Fine’s often baritone drawl (when he’s not belting it out, of course) is reminiscent of M. Ward mixed with Thom Yorke, and it powers the songs found here with a mixture of sincere emotion and grit.
Opening track, title track, and album highlight “A Cage Made of Tin” exists in the first slot for a reason… The band is clearly highlighting their evolving sound. Throughout the song, a mechanized drum roll keeps perfect time while the rest of RT crunches, moans, and wails their way through the song. Spindly guitar leads twist and twirl through dark and despondent descending chord progressions – the band’s glassy-eyed indie approach (think Kurt Vile with an emphasis on retro indie compositions) is truly something to enjoy here. Features from AWOLNATION keyboardist Kenny Carkeet and renowned blues musician Eric Scott help to set the mood here, but some of my favorite moments on “Cage” are the discordant blasts of noise or the occasional yelp of “YEAH!” that happen between the rhythmic start-stop energies found here.
Tracks two and three highlight guitarist Shehryar Mufti (aka Masterjee Bumbu) and his unique influence on Cage. “Such a Pretty Girl” is a previously unreleased Fine tune that he dusted off and remixed into its current iteration, and the following track, “Carry It Over” is a Fine/Mufti collab that again highlights the duo’s chemistry as co-writers. There’s an overarching lyrical theme here on Cage – that of finding moments of joy in a time of despair… And despite the heavy nature of “Over’s” theme, the band managed to find a way to fit it onto Cage seamlessly.
Track four, “Big Dreams” is an offering from guitarist Tony Vitez. It adds a hard rocking element to the EP, evoking a Thom Yorke-esque vocal melody while they explore elements of glam rock and 80s bombast. With guitars that sound like stacks upon stacks of amps and big soaring vocals, “Big Dreams” is a fun outlier that pumps a very unique energy into this collection of tunes. It’s a fun juxtaposition and perfect segue into the end of the EP, “Mind How You Go.” RT leaves you on a palatable cliffhanger, reminding you that there’s certainly more to come from this one-of-a-kind crew.
Keep your eyes peeled for A Cage Made of Tin, due out on August 25th. Until then, you can preview a live version of upcoming single “A Cage Made of Tin” below via Bandcamp. Also, you can find lots of other ways to support Roscoe Tripp via this helpful Linktree link.