Must have album: TILT – Hinterland (2016)

In early May, I received an email from a certain guy named Steve Vantsis. He asked if I was interested in reviewing his album that was going to be released in late June. Not knowing who Steve was, I was interested in this album he was talking about. I should be ashamed, because I didn’t know that Steve is the bassist of Fish’s band! Stupid me! … Anyway, let’s talk about the album!

The first thing what caught my eye is the embossment on the album sleeve, it’s very cool. Something you don’t get with a digital download, right? The band consists of Steve Vantsis (bass, keyboards), Dave Stewart (drums), Paul Humphreys (guitars, keyboards), and Paul Dourley (vocals). Steve is also responsible for the arrangements and producing. Guest musicians are Robin Boult, John Beck, Irvin Duguid, and John Mitchell, who’s also responsible for the mixing of the album. The album sounds pretty good. Sometimes a bit too much in your face but it doesn’t sound cluttered. Paul Dourley is a very good vocalist that has a pleasant voice, which is also a big plus!

The album starts with _Assembly. The intro is spooky and psychedelic, which I really like. Later on it turns into a solid prog rock track that slowly builds up, and the overall theme of the song changes after five minutes. It becomes slightly heavier because of the instrumental passage. Title track Hinterland is very up tempo. It even has a very grungy feel because of the heavy guitars and steady drums, which makes it very interesting. Against The Rain starts with a lovely piano. It’s a ballad with a very lovely atmosphere surrounding the complete song. Paul carries a lot of emotion in his voice. No Superman is, again, a super grungy track. This sounds really like Soundgarden and Audioslave, also Paul’s vocals really comes close to that of Chris Cornell. The piano part in the mid-section of the song is surprising and gives this song a cool twist. This is my favourite track on the album. Growing Colder is another ballad-like track. The chorus is lovely, and makes me want to sing along, and I love the orchestral outro of this song. Strontium Burning starts with guitars and percussion. The song is carrying a dark, haunting vibe, and has another catchy chorus and splendid guitar solo towards the end. Bloodline starts very gothic. I like the bass sound, which is very present. Later on the track becomes a real heavy prog rock track, with more calmer passages in between. Disassembly_ starts with a piano, and has a long instrumental intro, leaning towards ambient music. A track that would fit on Marillion’s album Marbles even.

This album can be categorized as real modern prog rock, and this band should be compared to other top class bands in the prog world/scene nowadays! This album will be present in my top 10 of 2016. A must have! Five out of five stars!

***** Iris Hidding

1. _Assembly (8.56)
2. Hinterland (8:00)
3. Against The Rain (5:02)
4. No Superman (4:29)
5. Growing Colder (6:25)
6. Strontium Burning (5:01)
7. Bloodline (9:03)
8. Disassembly_ (9:04)

http://www.tiltband.co.uk/

You can also read my review on Progarchy:

https://progarchy.com/2016/08/08/must-have-album-tilt-hinterland-2016-grendel-headquarters/

You can also read my review on the website of Background Magazine:

http://www.backgroundmagazine.nl/CDreviews/TiltHinterland.html

You can listen to the tracks Hinterland and Against The Rain here:

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