Review TREMONTI “The End Will Show Us How”

Detroit-born Mark Tremonti is best known as a member of Creed and Alter Bridge. Since 2011, the guitarist and singer also has his own band. The 2012 release “All I Was” was Tremonti‘s first album as a solo artist, and since then he has been releasing albums on a regular basis.

Four years after the release of “Marching in Time”, Tremonti has the next album ready to hit the stores. “The End Will Show Us How” is the title of the sixth longplayer, which contains 12 new songs, starting with “The Mother, The Earth and I”. We are listening to a typical Tremonti song, which contains a great guitar sound and also shows again that Mark Tremonti is also a great singer. The latter he showed with his Sinatra interpretations some time ago and his voice is also a key to the greatness of “The End Will Show Us How”. The opener has a certain psychedelic feel, which is mainly due to the guitar sound.

We continue with “One More Time” which is based on a really heavy riff that sets the tone right from the beginning of the song. The lead single for the album was “Just Too Much” and it is another example of Tremonti’s ability to combine melody, heaviness and a melancholic feel. In the end the song is a good ambassador for the album as it reflects most of the essence of “The End Will Show Us How”. “Nails” is one of the darker moments of the album and brings you to the emotional peak of this longplayer.

“It’s Not Over” is a touching moment of the record. Tremonti’s voice, along with an acoustic guitar, sets the scene before the song builds up to an atmospheric chorus. The title track reflects a similar approach before a thumping beat and grooving bass kick off “Tomorrow We Will Fail”. The mid-tempo rocker is a good song, though not the album’s most stunning moment.

Things get heavier again with “I’ll Take My Chances”. A thundering riff and a more melodic chorus radiate a darker mood, although the message is more of a “Carpe Diem” one. The opening of “Live in Fear” is heavy and complex. While the heaviness remains, it’s the complexity that competes with a melodic chorus of this hard-hitting tune.

“All the Wicked Things” is the last track on the album and the start is a bit unusual. The futuristic synth sound is something we wouldn’t expect from Tremonti and at the same time it’s moments like this that show the openness to be a little experimental. The album needs such a mindset, because the only weak point of “The End Will Show Us How” is that Tremonti sticks very much to the proven formula of success. You really have to dig into the details when listening to the album before the nuances are revealed. It’s not the big surprises that impress. Instead, it’s the passion for detail that makes the album another great addition to Tremonti’s musical achievements.

Together with a great sound, provided by none other than Michael Baskette, “The End Will Show Us How” is a grower. It may not impress the first time you spin these songs, but they will reveal more and more of their beauty each time you hit the ‘play’ button, providing a lasting pleasure.