I’ve never listened to nor had I ever heard of King Tuff until yesterday when I happened upon that album by The Third Sound. When I looked up the band on Wikipedia, I was immediately excited to see that the genres listed were “Garage rock, indie pop, power pop, neo-psychedelia, [and] stoner doom”. That being said, I don’t know if there’s anything else I can really add, so I’m going to jump into the music.
“Dancing On You” has a really nice soothing guitar coming from the right. Wow, that bass intro was incredibly smooth. I’m not even sure what instrument I’m hearing now, maybe a synth? Either way, it’s awesome. The vocals are super awesome. I feel like this voice is definitely one you might hear in an indie pop band, and Wikipedia was right on with that one. I really dig what’s going on with the guitars and the synth – they’re just sort of swishing around almost. There was almost a faux-feedback effect for a moment that was pretty neat. That bass tone is really awesome; it sounds really bright to my ears.
“Connection” starts out with what could be a cell phone ring tone. I really dig the way they incorporated a sound like that into the tune. The vocals sound laid out with a lot of care. There’s so much music happening in the song. This band looks to be played exclusively by Kyle Thomas, but that’s just what I’ve found on first glance on the internet and can’t say whether or not that’s true. The vocals have really impressed me with how they’re arranged into the soundscape. That electric guitar comes in and adds a great flavor, and the electric organ complements it extremely well.
“Sun Medallion” has an acoustic part that is almost puzzling to listen to. I really dig this song. It subverts expectations almost immediately in the song. Wow, that electric guitar is super tasty. Ooh, this song has some great attitude to it – it almost reminds me of The Brian Jonestown Massacre at times.
“Lazerbeam” has somewhat of a soft crunch to it – both in the guitars and the style. It’s kind of indie punk almost – there’s a great energy to it, and it sounds filled with power chords, but it’s still a bit more complex and arguably polished than your typical punk song. Then again, who’s to say what exactly punk music is. There’s a certain softness to the sound in general that makes it really interesting to hear, almost giving a sunny disposition to it, in a way.
This album is flying by so far, very fun to listen to. “Lady” feels maybe a bit weightier at first than some of the other songs. Wow, this song is awesome. It’s got a certain southern garage rock feeling to it. Those guitar licks are really awesome. I’m not quite sure what I’m hearing in the percussion, but there’s almost a jangliness to it, like a metallic shaker of some sort, maybe a tambourine? This song just absolutely cruises – it almost reminds me of The Setting Son, another band I haven’t written about, but was greatly impressed by.
“A Pretty Dress” has more of that indie punk feel to it. I really like the distortion on the guitar. No note really sounds out of place, everything sounds very polished and deliberate in the arrangement. There’s definitely some psychedelic influence peppered into the music, which always makes it more interesting for me.
“Ruthie Ruthie” has incredible energy right away. It feels like it builds up to something really rad. That power pop description from Wikipedia was pretty accurate. Wow, that electric guitar is absolutely shredding – I love that tone. This song definitely reminds me of some early punk music, though not necessarily a single band in particular. That chaotic guitar really hooks me in for more.
“Just Strut” has some incredible instrumentation with the keyboards or perhaps synth or something else, that immediately made me go “what was that? I hope there’s more”, and left me on the edge of my seat listening and hoping for more of that instrument. It’s such an interesting song. This one is the most overtly psychedelic tune of the album thus far, though it’s still very subtle in its approach. This music sounds incredibly accessible for anyone, honestly; it’s just some great, unique songwriting with a positive feeling to it, and that also includes really interesting song arranging.
“Kind of Guy” takes more of garage rock approach on this one. There’s an incredibly diverse amount of music on this album, honestly. That electric guitar doesn’t stop for anything, and the drums and bass really gives a strong backdrop for the song to stand on. Wow, that electric guitar sounds so sloppy, but it melds together incredibly well with the song. The song really picks up some great attitude as only the vocals, drums, and bass remain for a moment.
“Freak When I’m Dead” has an awesome melodic acousticness to it. It almost sounds to me like an electric guitar plugged straight into the mixing table with no effects at times. Then there’s other electric guitar parts that have some super crunchy fuzz on them that provide a great juxtaposition to the other more acoustic sounding instruments in the tune. Wow, that harmonica comes out of nowhere, and at that point the song is running on all cylinders. That bass isn’t to be overlooked either, I really dig the tone coming out of it. There’s a lot of unexpected instrumentation parts that are incorporated into each song that makes each song a real treat to hear.
“Animal” has a really awesome feel to it. It sounds a lot like a Beatles song in certain ways; it’s quite tight, pretty joyous to listen to, and includes subtleties like clapping and other weird and unique instrumentation to the tune. I really dig the vocals on this one.
“Stone Fox” has another more garage rock feel to it than the last couple of songs, though it’s almost bluesy in the way it seems to be meandering through what’s happening. Wow, this one does get pretty psychedelic in instrumentation, arrangement, and lyrics. I really love the way the guitars feel like they’re not stopping for anything.
“So Desperate” has a very conclusive feeling to it. Like the entire album was a climb up a hill, and with this song, you’ve gotten there. It’s quite carefree in its sound, even when singing about something like desperation, though I think it seems to be a sound of overcoming desperation in a certain way. The vocals are really fun to listen to how they’re arranged in the composition. That electric guitar solo really echos the lyrics and vocals quite well, with its own additions as well. The tone of the lead electric guitar is really awesome in how much of a punch it packs at times, and also in how dynamic it is throughout the album. Very fun tune.
This album was really pleasant to listen to. I really especially dig the little flourishes of psychedelia here and there, but am amazed at how accessible to all this album seems to me to be. This is a great album for listening in a car ride, in my opinion. And indie fans of all types will hopefully enjoy it at least as much as I did.
-A