Album Review :
Terra Terra Terra - Mind Like A Man, Soul Like A Child
Band: Terra Terra Terra
Title: Mind Like A Man, Soul Like A Child
Label: Round Kid Records
Release Date: August 11, 2009
Review By: Scott L
Tracklisting:
- Prologue
- Paradigm
- Transmission Lost
- Too Far
- Taking Her Home
- Now You Will See Me
- Only The Penitent Man Shall Pass
- This Is My Associate Cornelius
- Wrong This Right
- The Coast Is Clear
Being a hockey fan has it’s ups and downs. Like when your team loses in the seventh game of the Stanley Cup Finals. But I suppose it’s the same in any sport. As strange as it may sound, one of the things that originally hooked me on the sport was reading an article about an on ice agitator by the name of Matthew Barnaby. He was a role player who potted an odd goal here and there for the Buffalo Sabres. And what got me, was when the article quoted him as saying that he had once goaded an opposing player into a scrap by telling him that he looked like Cornelius from the Planet of the Apes. It just doesn’t get much better than that. So when I came across a song on this CD with a title that included the name Cornelius, I knew that I had to check them out.
Terra Terra Terra is a 4-piece out of Lakeland, Florida that plays a mellow blend of pop-inflected indie rock that would fit in well with the likes of The Vow, Lovedrug, and Hundred Year Storm. Granted, Terra Terra Terra is a bit more popish than Hundred Year Storm… but on the slower side the comparison fits well. The songs on “Mind Like A Man, Soul Like A Child” are a good mix that holds your attention without being overbearing. You’ll find lots of emotion and quickly notice that these guys have the ability to put together some beautiful melodies that should warrant a good reception in the market.
Lyrically, Terra Terra Terra is kind of a one trick pony. The music soars… but the words just don’t seem to generate any traction. Relationship is the word of the day, every day for these guys it seems. And frankly, some of the songs come off a little to eager. Consider the song The Coast Is Clear” which says, “I’m not leaving cus I have to / but I want to / is that okay with you / don’t forget me in case I have to run back to you / am I catching up / and the coast is clear / we can come out of hiding from our sheets / I’ve been lying for years / shaking hands with the demons beside me / and all we fear is alive”. Or maybe “Transmission Lost” which says, “why is she screaming / I know / I know everybody wants to see / from the hole in the atmosphere / so come on / come on let’s get this started / I know you like the way we dance / and tonight is your night / so come on”. Mostly cliché, but I guess that’s what’s selling these days. Nothing really spiritual to speak of here, mostly boy meets girl, break up, make up, sorta themes. Yawn.
The standout track was the CD’s closer, “The Coast Is Clear”. I thought it was pretty much the embodiment of what these guys are capable of. You can really feel the passion in the ebb and flow of the song.
Overall: Terra Terra Terra has put together a decent CD that manages to keep things fresh musically, if not thematically. It may not challenge you intellectually, but it’s worth a listen if you’re looking for some nice mellow indie rock. And, hey, am I the only one that thinks that the drummer bears a certain resemblance to all-star defenseman Chris Chelios?
www.myspace.com/terraterraterra