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Reviews

Runaway Totem — Tep Zepi
(Musea FGBG 4465.AR, 2002, CD)

by Sean McFee, Published 2003-08-01

Tep Zepi Cover art

Along with Universal Totem Orchestra (a splinter offshoot), Runaway Totem is about the only band from Italy that you’ll ever hear described as having a Magma influence. You can certainly hear that to some extent on Tep Zepi, although it’s married with a Gothic sensibility (lots of “oooh choir” sounds in the keyboard patches) and a touch of metal in the guitars. The band uses a lot of angular riffs in the heavy sections, as well as odd meters like 15/8 to keep things off balance. The vocals are delivered in a deep, resonant tenor with a bit of vibrato. There is some good use of dynamic contrast, with acoustic timbers and consonant, major-key melodies in the softer passages offsetting the riffs described earlier. While I can’t fault the band on the approach — variation in dynamics, harmonics, and musical ingredients in general usually floats my boat — there seems to be something missing. It’s difficult to put a finger on, but it’s kind of like everything is so scattershot that the band can’t build intensity. As a result the heavier parts are less impressive, which makes the dynamic contrasts less effective as well. Universal Totem Orchestra’s Rituale Alieno succeeds with better singing and more thematic development and consistency. But with Runaway Totem everything meanders a bit more, and when the album is over I’m left with no emotional incentive to play it again.

Filed under: New releases, Issue 27, 2002 releases

Related artist(s): Runaway Totem

 

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