Tumbleweed Dealer - Western Horror

Tumbleweed Dealer is one of the most promising up-and-coming bands from Montreal that I’ve listened to since 2012. After hearing their debut EP in November 2012 and their debut sole self-titled debut last year, I knew this is a band that is worth checking out. And now their follow up, Western Horror, is almost like the soundtrack to a score for either the graphic novel of Frank Miller’s Sin City or almost as if Dario Argento, Sergio Leone, and Lucio Fulci worked together by combining the Italian Horror films of the ‘70s by making it a Giallo-Spaghetti-Western movie that stayed true to combining; The Man With No Name trilogy, Deep Red (Profondo Rosso), Zombi 2, and Suspiria with a Western gore-fest attitude.

The album cover almost looks like a poster that is perfect for the Grindhouse cinemas during that time period in the 1970s for Drive-Thru cinemas for midnight showings as you can imagine audiences to be scared and jump out their car seats when something would happen if the killer had an Ax and attacking the town in the middle of nowhere. And the tagline, “Sometimes looking for weed in strange places goes horribly wrong,” is a perfect way for you to get your popcorn, drink, and rasinets and enjoy a disturbing real horror adventure that you will never forget that you can imagine the movie inside your mind for a disturbing yet hypnotic concept album to explore.

Opener, Bluntlust begins with a deserted-like guitar introduction with a bluesy feel before the bass and drums come kicking in as you can imagine the car driving into the town and the credits beginning knowing that this isn’t going to be your typical blockbuster bombastic movie. The touches of late ‘60s psychedelic doom garage-rock sounds really fill the scenery with a touch of Tool’s 10,000 Days-era as if it was released in 1969-’70 thanks to Seb’s touches on the tribute to Adam Jones as he goes through the rhythm and touches on the Bass as well to capture that intense drive into the hellish town.

Slow Walk Through a Ghost Town is a 4/4 time signature ominous-like waltz as the people walk through the town where no one is there and its almost you could feel as if a pin dropped out of nowhere while imagining that there is nowhere to head out as whirling solo sets the nightmarish feel along with the laid-back drum patterns while Riding Upon a Skeletal Steed in which it has a stoner melodic structure riff that plays throughout the entire composition. There is a nice feel that reminded me of Diagonal’s Semi Permeable Men-Brain along with Southern Reaper, and where Tumbleweed Dealer go, they take it to a different level and making their almost film score with it.

From the mellowing grooves with …And The Horse You O.D.’d On and When Death Valley Becomes Home to the menacing rhythm section for the battle to get out of the deserted town by using a gardening tool and a firearm to battle for survival on A Scythe In One Hand, A Shotgun in the Other. Then it is the closing track for the credits to roll on Dead Dad Blues (Ending Credits). You could imagine the bloody aftermath and the spooky atmosphere on where we go from next as the tone has this sinister and disturbing touch from the guitar that play the rhythm and lead section that reminded me at times of Pete Townshend’s guitar work and a little bit of Robert Fripp and David Gilmour as well and it is sends chills down my spine.

Tumbleweed Dealer have scored another follow-up and the concept of almost doing like a Horror film for the Grindhouse-era in which I have mentioned earlier and it’s something that just took me by surprise after listening about four times of the entire album. And I always wanted to know what kind of tricks they have up their sleeve for the next one.