Math Rock
Or as Nick Reinhart (guitarist) describes it as "bands that like Fugazi". I honestly could never hope to say enough about this group. They remain a constant favorite of mine not because of chops, emotion or anything like that but because of their evolution as a group over time. Most Math groups are content to rest on notions that we all know and love that have been paved through by father Don Cab. Not so at all with Tera Melos.
With four major releases under their belt it isn't hard to see why they are all so loved. Spazzy Jazz core with ambient bits thrown in with electronic portions. Yet at the end of the day this band can crush you with guitars. I saw these gents play last year and actually got to spend a long time speaking with them as they were staying at a friends. What I gleaned from all three of them was a restless nature of moving on to the next best thing. When it comes to art in music this is the key to the golden city for me.
Self-titled - First full length. A very tight outing with memorable riffs. All 4 original members were a part of this release. The most "conventional" of all their albums but certainly turned heads when it dropped.
Drugs to the Dear Youth EP- Minus guitartist Jeff Worms. This is a wholly different group. Where riffs were titanic they are now manic and abrasive. Space is given to the songs yet the harder parts are that much harder. Vince Rogers drumming has become more free jazz in nature and all the better for it. EXCELLENT
Complex Full of Phantoms - Another EP this time split with another math group "By the End of Tonight" This is a compounding of both previous releases together into a glorious cohesive mess. Also vocals make their shy appearance. This is a stand out among their releases and many feel their strongest. Everyone is firing on all cylinders.
Patagonian Rats Minus Vince Rogers. For me (and many) this was a large blow for the group. Nick had been expressing his love of pop music around this time and it seems to me this was his stab at using these elements. Some good songs but just not as strong as we are used to.
I've heard a bunch of random songs of theirs from different eras. I think a lot of the early stuff is a little too spaz for me, yet the newer stuff isn't very gripping in its "pop" influences. Definitely some songs I thought were sick though, just can't remember what. Will check out.
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