Marching In Time

[CrowsOnAWire]

Yep, Under the Sun is one of two songs on the album without a guitar solo and it's one of the least dynamic of all the songs on the album. It isn't bad by any means, it has a cool vibe but I wouldn't say it's a highlight.

[scarecrow]

I'll never forgive Mark for playing a snippet of 'Let That Be Us' and then releasing 4 other songs before letting me hear the rest of it

Not much longer to wait though

nope, not much longer to wait at all.

yeah, i can't believe it wasn't one of the first singles. should be a real scorcher in concert.

[Ubik]

Wait, they nearly didn't put Walking on the Sky on Walk the Sky? That's insane.

[scarecrow]

Wait, they nearly didn't put Walking on the Sky on Walk the Sky? That's insane.

houses of the holy isn't on houses of the holy

[Ubik]

houses of the holy isn't on houses of the holy

Not talking about the title, talking about it being the best song on the album

[scarecrow]

houses of the holy isn't on houses of the holy

Not talking about the title, talking about it being the best song on the album

oh, i got you. i disagree but it's still pretty great. the bridge is one of my favorite moments on the record.

[Dan Dando]

I'll never forgive Mark for playing a snippet of 'Let That Be Us' and then releasing 4 other songs before letting me hear the rest of it

Not much longer to wait though

nope, not much longer to wait at all.

yeah, i can't believe it wasn't one of the first singles. should be a real scorcher in concert.

It lived up to the hype!

'Not Afraid to Lose' might just be my early favourite. It has a wistful, early 2000s rock ballad vibe that I like

Thanks again, Scarecrow

[scarecrow]

I'll never forgive Mark for playing a snippet of 'Let That Be Us' and then releasing 4 other songs before letting me hear the rest of it

Not much longer to wait though

nope, not much longer to wait at all.

yeah, i can't believe it wasn't one of the first singles. should be a real scorcher in concert.

It lived up to the hype!

'Not Afraid to Lose' might just be my early favourite. It has a wistful, early 2000s rock ballad vibe that I like

Thanks again, Scarecrow

yeah, thanks for NOTHING

[austin.]

Metallica, Breaking Benjamin, and Tremonti on the same stage Sunday. You kidding me???? Wow. Have a good day everyone.

[ToNsOFuN88]

I'll never forgive Mark for playing a snippet of 'Let That Be Us' and then releasing 4 other songs before letting me hear the rest of it

Not much longer to wait though

nope, not much longer to wait at all.

yeah, i can't believe it wasn't one of the first singles. should be a real scorcher in concert.

It lived up to the hype!

'Not Afraid to Lose' might just be my early favourite. It has a wistful, early 2000s rock ballad vibe that I like

Thanks again, Scarecrow

yeah, thanks for NOTHING

Thanks for NOTHING as well!

Let That Be Us definitely lived up to the hype. Only thing was I had to retrain my ear to the actually song because Mark turned down the volume at the beginning of the chorus on the Rusty video, and I used to fill in the melody with what I thought it might be. The "Long live the day, carry the truth, walk with me" took me a second to get used to

So far I'm loving the album. Will definitely take a few listens to digest it all. Which honestly each of the singles took a few listens to digest and I love these singles more than any other Tremonti releases original singles. Standouts of the unheard for me so far are Let That Be Us, Last One Of Us, Thrown Further, and Not Afraid To Lose. If I could stop listening to these, maybe I could give the others a chance lol. I agree about Under The Sun being the hardest one to click with so far, which tricked me because that opening guitar part pulled me in immediately.

[CrowsOnAWire]

https://www.stereoboard.com/content/view/233068/9

How Mark Tremonti Turned Pandemic Blues Into Metal Gold
Wednesday, 22 September 2021 Written by Simon Ramsay

On 2018’s ‘A Dying Machine’ melodic metallers Tremonti unfurled a fantastical sci-fi concept set in a bleak, otherworldly dystopia. Two years later, band leader Mark Tremonti found himself—much like the rest of the planet—living in one. Initially plagued by self doubt and creative inaction as Covid took hold, the guitarist eventually rediscovered his mojo and used that experience to fashion ‘Marching in Time’, possibly the most explosive, anthemic and emotionally gripping album of his storied career.

After five impressive records with the side band that sport his instantly recognisable moniker, not to mention countless high-quality efforts with Creed and Alter Bridge, it’s definitely time to stop referring to Mark Tremonti in one dimensional terms. Yes, he is a sensational six-string exponent, one of the finest of his generation, but equally we can't ignore the fact he’s also a gifted songwriter who’s also evolved into a fantastic singer.

Stacked to the rafters with brutal metal riffage and scintillating solos, not to mention magnificent performances from the rest of the band on tracks that range from face-frying bangers to towering ballads and prog-infused epics, ‘Marching in Time’ excels because of Tremonti’s all round game. Each immense hook delivers the kind of anthemic uppercut that could knock out a stadium rock crowd with one blow.

We caught up with Mark to chat about Tremonti’s finest moment to date, while discovering which guitarist he thinks might be the best in the world, and finding out why fans should keep their ears peeled for a special announcement early next year.

Some songwriters weren’t able to write during the pandemic. How did it affect you?

I felt the same way. For about five months I wasn’t excited about writing or playing a ton of guitar. I kept myself busy working around the house and had a baby daughter I was preparing for. But when I got back into putting this record together I snapped out of it and, to me, I can hear the excitement of getting back into songwriting and creating. With this record we had a lot more time to thoroughly piece things together. It was a lot of work, but every record takes a non stop effort to get finalised and ready to go. Not just the lyrical content, but the vocal melodies and transitions from part to part, making sure it all fits, and that the record is a dynamic one that tells a story and sounds fresh and new from previous attempts.

A lot of the themes on the album give off the air of someone suffering an existential crisis that’s been triggered by the pandemic and having a lot of time to think.

Each song is definitely a different story but some look inside, some look at fictional characters. So there’s a little bit of everything thrown in. The title track is probably the most personal. That was about finding out my wife was pregnant in 2020, when the world was turned upside down, and the fear of bringing a child into a world that’s in such a bad place at the present moment.

You’ve previously talked about how writing vocal melodies is your favourite thing to do. There’s certainly a darkness and intensity to the album, but the choruses deliver hope. Who are your inspirations when it comes to writing killer melodic lines?

It probably goes way back to when I was a child and listening to Gerry Rafferty, Paul Simon, Seals & Crofts and even Journey—‘70s soft rock was where I got my start, then my world collided with speed metal when I was growing up. So I tried to combine those two. I like a chorus to really lift you up. It’s the centre of the song so a lot of times that feeling is an uplifting one. That being said, I love heavy, dark choruses as well, but I think the chorus should be the most emotionally intense part of the song.

Ryan Bennett stepped in for Garrett Whitlock on drums a few years ago and immediately makes his presence felt on pulverising opener A World Away. What did he bring to the table?

A new energy. He’s a hungry, passionate musician. I told him many times ‘this is your introduction to our fanbase’ and I wanted to give him that opportunity to shine, especially on the ending of Marching in Time, he almost has his own drum solo. I think he stepped right up to bat and did a great job.

What’s the guitar playing relationship like between yourself and Eric Friedman in Tremonti and how does it differ with how you and Myles Kennedy interact in Alter Bridge?

I’ll write the music and he’ll write to fill out the sound. Sometimes we just quad guitars and play the same riffs, but a lot of the time he’ll add layers to what I’m doing. He fills the same role as Myles does in Alter Bridge, where I’m kind of the meat and potatoes, big heavy riffing guy, and when you hear effects or arpeggiated things on top of that, those are usually Myles or Eric.

When you’re playing a solo, what do you want to hear beneath and around you, in terms of rhythms, chord progressions, particular keys, that inspire you to hit your finest heights?

I want a big, nice lush wall of rhythm guitar beds to begin with. But I also want some unique chord changes to hit. Or memorable vocal melodies that shine through when you kind of imitate them with your guitar solo. I try not to rely on technique the whole time through a solo. I wanna create a little song within a song. It’s got to have its own melody, tell its own story. I don’t want to just blast through licks you’ve heard a hundred times.

Let That Be Us is probably my favourite solo on the record. The Last One of Us was a tough one to put together because it’s about twice as long as any of the other solos on the album. It’s got some bluesy jazzy stuff in it too. The fun thing about that one was I got to come out swinging with it and then do a backed off solo, with a little more space, and hopefully a little more class than just the full speed stuff.



You’ve spoken a lot about your growing love for blues guitarists and that comes across on the record’s very singable solos. Which of those players inspire you the most?

BB King is, for me, the skeleton of the blues if you want to dive in and learn an outline of how to be a blues player. And then Albert Collins and Albert King. I’m particularly drawn to modern players too. Derek Trucks could be one of the best guitar players on earth. Jeff Beck. Eric Gales is incredible. Joe Bonamassa has become one of the superheroes of the guitar world, the unstoppable force that he is. I could go on and on. To me, it’s much more exciting than the players I grew up wanting to be on the shred side of things. I still enjoy that, but lean more towards blues-based lead guitar playing these days.

Last month marked the 30th anniversary of Metallica’s ‘The Black Album’. You’re a huge fan of ‘Master of Puppets’ and have spoken passionately about that record, but what did you make of ‘The Black Album’ when you first heard it?

I thought it was a new Metallica. This wasn’t the Metallica I grew up with but I loved it just the same. I thought The Unforgiven was an amazing track. You couldn’t help but love Enter Sandman the first hundred times you heard it. It was awesome right out of the gate. Nothing Else Matters was the song every guitar player I knew was immediately playing. Wherever I May Roam was such a great riff, great song. My biggest complaint was there was no instrumental, because those were some of my favourite Metallica tracks. Orion is my favourite song off of my favourite record, so that was a very important song for me.

It’s been pointed out that Tremonti is much more of a side band than a pure solo gig for you, so do you have any plans for a solo album where you take complete creative control and maybe do something that might surprise people?

This band is as close as it gets to being 100% my personal expression, because I write all the songs, lyrics, melodies and parts. It’s the favourite things that can come out of my imagination. There’s no compromise. But I do have a project that’s way different from anything I’ve ever done in the past and is top secret. It’s definitely something people aren’t gonna see coming and we’re gonna announce it in the spring.

You recently revealed that Alter Bridge will start making a new album soon. You and Myles wrote separately for your last record ‘Walk The Sky’, which was different to how you’d done things in the past. Do you intend to adopt that approach again or return to your previous way of collaborating?

It’s going to be a combination of both. Me and Myles know, at this point, we can write independently and still get together and make it sound like Alter Bridge. That’s what we had to do on the last record. We had to come to the table with songs ready to go and then choose which we were gonna finalise. Whenever you take a song you’ve written on your own, and then put it through the Alter Bridge filter, it gives it that Alter Bridge flavour. We now know that we can write as much as we want, no matter how independent we are and how much time we spend apart, and can always get together and spend a couple months giving it that Alter Bridge sound.

What's it been like to play gigs again after such a long hiatus, and will you be coming over to the UK at any point soon, given the logistical issues associated with touring right now?

It’s been great. It was the longest I’ve been off tour since 1997 so it’s definitely been good to get back into the swing of things. We do have dates booked through the end of this year in the States and then have the minimum of January through most of February booked and ready to go for Europe. But in Europe, as you know, each country is different so we don’t want to take any chances on booking 25 shows and have two of them go to the wayside because of Covid restrictions. It’s a moving target right now and we’re still putting it together to make sure we’re all safe.

[SHEAKENBAKEN]

"But I do have a project that’s way different from anything I’ve ever done in the past and is top secret. It’s definitely something people aren’t gonna see coming and we’re gonna announce it in the spring."


Thank fuck he finally gave us all a window for the announcement so I can stop asking "When is this damn thing gonna get announced" Best part of the whole interview there

[CrowsOnAWire]

https://livemetalblog.wordpress.com/20 ... ssion=true

REVIEW: Tremonti – ‘Marching in Time’

So let’s talk about that intro. “A World Away” viciously assaults the listener right out of the gate with what would be a crushing breakdown were it in the middle of the song, then leads into a driving, devastating thrash/speed metal riff. It’s the heaviest Tremonti has ever been, and it’s glorious.

But wait, there’s more. Overall, the song shows what a well-rounded musician and songwriter Mark Tremonti (Alter Bridge, Creed) truly is, with a strong hook, equally powerful vocals, some keys for a little extra texture and, of course, mighty guitar heroics on full display.

You can extend that description to the whole of “Marching in Time,” Tremonti’s fifth album with his eponymous band. With production, as always, by Michael “Elvis” Baskette,” Mark’s guitar tone is as muscular as ever and, along with the vocals, the obvious focal point. The mix, however, allows the entire band to come through loud and clear, especially drummer Ryan Bennett, making a thunderous recording debut with the band after replacing Garrett Whitlock.

Highlights of the record include the aforementioned beatdown of “A World Away,” the rock-radio-ready—but let’s face it, too heavy for bland rock radio—“Let That Be Us,” the softer but no less powerful “The Last One of Us” leading into the crunchy “In One Piece” and the epic, album-closing title track. It isn’t a sci-fi concept album with an accompanying novel like 2018’s “A Dying Machine,” and the recording session didn’t yield two full albums like the 2015/2016 combo of “Cauterize” and “Dust.“ But front to back, “Marching in Time” just might be Tremonti’s most satisfying listen to date, an electrifying showcase of one of the giants in the genre of heavy music.

Rating: 9/10

[AB4Lyfe]

FOR THOSE WHO HAVE HEARD "BLEAK":

How was it? Need details.

[CrowsOnAWire]

FOR THOSE WHO HAVE HEARD "BLEAK":

How was it? Need details.

Brooding. Has a cool vibe. Slower tempo than some of the other songs.

[CrowsOnAWire]

http://devilsgatemusic.co.uk/review-tr ... g-in-time/

Review: Tremonti – ‘Marching In Time’

Having gone down the concept album route on 2018’s ‘A Dying Machine’, Mark Tremonti has returned to a more traditional album structure on new album ‘Marching In Time’; the fifth outing for his solo band known simply as Tremonti. Twelve tracks with zero connection (excluding the fact that they are bloody massive) that roll into one pounding beast of an album.

With Michael “Elvis” Baskette in his usual position at the production console, ‘Marching In Time’ sounds impressive from the first few down-tuned moments of opening track ‘A World Away’. What Baskette excels at is making an album gigantic sounding, but without any loss of clarity; ‘A World Away’ can be turned all the way up to 11 and every lyric, every vocal hook (and there are many), every drum beat from the magical Ryan Bennett, can all be heard with perfect clarity – and Mark Tremonti’s deliciously clean vocals soar higher on each outing. The riffage on the opening track – oh my, oh my, my, my. Powerful and heavy in places, melodic in others, it’s almost a thrashier Foo Fighters, and Tremonti does make it look effortless. Likewise, take the thrashy riffs, and pounding breakdown out of ‘Now And Forever’ and the bones of a Dave Grohl anthem is simmering away quite nicely. Quite proggy in places, it is a track that grows larger the louder the volume goes.

Propelled forward at pace by the stellar drum work from Bennett, and including some neat effects in the background that could be an outtake from a John Carpenter soundtrack, ‘Thrown Further’ is a total riot. Uplifting vocals from Tremonti are becoming a trademark of his solo material, and here they are fantastic, as they also are on ‘Let That Be Us’. Bennett doesn’t slow down and his machine-gun drumming on ‘Let That Be Us’ is damn special and larger-than-life enough to awaken the air drummer in all of us (ditto ‘In One Piece’). ‘The Last One Of Us’ benefits from some clean, acoustic guitar lines and more of those subtle effects in the background (maybe even a synth or two?), Tremonti’s soaring vocals (again) steal the show. ‘Bleak’ begins like it could live up to its name, but once the main body of the song springs to life around the one-minute mark then it becomes full of rich color rather than simply black and white. One of the cornerstones of the live show perchance? If not, then it certainly deserves to be. One track that will certainly be an important moment of the live show is the epic seven-minute plus title track; perhaps the most “Alter Bridge” of the twelve featured tracks on the album, this one…this one is perfection. Special mention to the fine band that Mark Tremonti has assembled, mighty fine indeed.

In a similar way to how Joe Bonamassa’s studio output is becoming less about his guitar playing, and more about how strong his vocals have become, ‘Marching In Time’ highlights Tremonti’s growth as a vocalist in the nine years since the debut Tremonti album ‘All I Was’. And that’s not a suggestion that both Bonamassa’s and Tremonti’s guitar talents have somehow dulled, far from it, there are so many top-quality riffs, guitar breaks, and solos packed into ‘Marching In Time’ that at times it is dazzling. But when you have someone so revered for their main talent (in this case, guitar) then sometimes anything else can often be overlooked, with that in mind, Mark Tremonti deserves great credit for the work that he has put in with his vocals and the end result is undoubtedly his strongest vocal work to date, on an album that delivers time-after-time.

[scarecrow]

honestly think this album has changed my creed-related priorities. (i am a tremonti lifer for those who don't know. my first creed show was in august 2000 and mark's music has been the soundtrack to my life for 20+ years now, even as i've largely moved away from hard rock music. i was even a hated figure around these parts when rise today came out. i didn't like the song and i was a jerk to people about it. i'm truly sorry for that and happy to still have a place to talk about mark and co.)

1. tremonti
2. ab
3. myles solo
4. creed
5. getting hit by a bus
6. stapp solo

[SHEAKENBAKEN]

honestly think this album has changed my creed-related priorities. (i am a tremonti lifer for those who don't know. my first creed show was in august 2000 and mark's music has been the soundtrack to my life for 20+ years now, even as i've largely moved away from hard rock music. i was even a hated figure around these parts when rise today came out. i didn't like the song and i was a jerk to people about it. i'm truly sorry for that and happy to still have a place to talk about mark and co.)

1. tremonti
2. ab
3. myles solo
4. creed
5. getting hit by a bus
6. stapp solo

Dang, SMKC aint even above Stapp Solo or being hit by a bus

[scarecrow]

FOR THOSE WHO HAVE HEARD "BLEAK":

How was it? Need details.

lyrically similar to "pay no mind" imo. cool ominous acoustic intro and verses, heavy chorus. well placed on the album. maybe the most compelling vocal performance on the record. neat bridge. i think there's a surprising theatrical undercurrent to the track.

[scarecrow]

honestly think this album has changed my creed-related priorities. (i am a tremonti lifer for those who don't know. my first creed show was in august 2000 and mark's music has been the soundtrack to my life for 20+ years now, even as i've largely moved away from hard rock music. i was even a hated figure around these parts when rise today came out. i didn't like the song and i was a jerk to people about it. i'm truly sorry for that and happy to still have a place to talk about mark and co.)

1. tremonti
2. ab
3. myles solo
4. creed
5. getting hit by a bus
6. stapp solo

Dang, SMKC aint even above Stapp Solo or being hit by a bus

i just never connected with any of the conspirators stuff. bought the first record. listened to the others. didn't make any real impression on me. would much rather listen to the mf4 records.