Review: “Unsought Salvation” by Tylor Dory Trio

Tylor Dory Trio was conceived in late 2012 by guitarist and vocalist Tylor Dory and drummer Jonathan Webster who wanted to step aside from playing in Extreme Metal bands to explore the music close to their hearts – Proggy weird stuff. The trio was completed in late 2013 after the addition of their bassist Slava Fedossenko. Bringing together an eclectic range of influences from Opeth to Alice In Chains and even Rush, 2015 saw them release their debut EP “Carried Away“. It’s follow up “Unsought Salvation” was recorded with the prolific Christer-Andre Cederberg at his studio in Kristiansand, Norway in February 2017 and will finally see release on 20th December.

A therapy session during the synth backed opening of “The Righteous and the Rest” about being prisoners of our own thoughts is certainly a novel way to start an album. The surprise is that after the first wave of synth backed Progressive Metal riffs play out, we are greeted by the bright riffs of the likes of Intervals with some Grunge era vocals that you wouldn’t expect to find as an accompaniment but work incredibly well. How Tylor Dory himself can manage to sing this well and play the riffs he does here live can only be a thing of wonder. “Comatose” enhances the melody of the opening song with a musical subtleties that only appear after multiple listens allowing the vocals to be bigger in the mix. Lyrically highly engaging and with a solo that steps into some of the Extreme Metal they mentioned wanting to step away, the track literally has everything as it runs the guantlet between the two extremes. The quality of the musicanship is second to none. Industrial Pop sounds underpin “The Fallen Man” as it brings James Bond esq cinematic riffs to the table until the vocals start. The heart of an Alternative Rock song with some left field change ups, it could be a Tremonti radio friendly affair with an edit as it gets progressively heavier as it plays out while never quite reaching the extremes it threatens to.

So Alice In Chains that it could be on their acoustic album, Dory’s effeminate vocals in parts of “Dying Light” off a wide range and phenomenal ability. As it’s essentially a Grunge era song with some Progressive riffs and longer verses in its structure it might not appeal to Progressive Metal purists but it is wonderfully well constructed, taking the best of the genre and molding it into its own creation. “The Spaces In Between” has more in common with Devin Townsend, someone close to the trio’s heart as they covered “Deadhead” a few months. The increased aggression and some Death Metal lines are well crafted into a song that floats between extremes with seamless sublime skill in classical music style movements. A slick solo just adds to the sense of wonder. First single “East Of Eden” caught our attention with its music video, the Edmonton Canadian’s summarising their album sound in a single song that works some profanity into the unsuspecting listeners ears while ranging from the sublime to the ridiculously good. The final third having some of the best crunch the album has to offer. “Glass Menagerie” circles back into some Pink Floyd territory while talking of a broken relationship and the damage done. Intertwining layers of acoustic and electric guitar with some bass heavy moments and synths would mean a sizable and skilled backing band if it wasn’t for the ability to use a backing track as there is so much going on that it it becomes an album that keeps giving more to enjoy and hear over time.

Changing gear with some Progressive Hard Rock riffs with Funk elements thrown in for good measure, “Marionettes (of Distant Masters)” sees bassist Slava Fedossenko lay the foundation of a track that could easily belong to Audioslave, such is it’s quality. There are ideas galore on “Unsought Salvation” and it will be interesting to see them explored in future work. “Into The Maelstrom” has a Country vibe to it in places while having some floaty space age things going on. An atmospheric ambient piece it would have made for an excellent closing track with its shoegazing quality but that privilege is saved for the nearly 14 minute opus that is “Cenotaph“. A thing of beauty that boils down into almost three different versions of the same song in movements like conjoined twins, it messes with the mind as it plays out in sublime technicolor [7.5/10]

Track Listing:
1. The Righteous and the Rest (6:16)
2. Comatose (5:15)
3. The Fallen Man (5:45)
4. Dying Light (5:08)
5. The Spaces In Between (5:06)
6. East of Eden (5:49)
7. Glass Menagerie (5:28)
8. Marionettes (of Distant Masters) (4:37)
9. Into The Maelstrom (4:40)
10. Cenotaph (13:42)

“Unsought Salvation” by Tylor Dory Trio is out 20th December and is available for pre-order over at bandcamp