Album Review: Tremonti - 'Dust'

Mark Thomas Tremonti, the lead guitarist of the equally loved and hated Creed and the slightly better, swagger-filled Alter Bridge, has released his third solo record, ‘Dust’.

Recorded during the same time as his last record, ‘Cauterize’ (hence the same face on this album cover) this new album isn’t all that different from what his other material consists of, to be blunt. Huge melodic choruses and even bigger (and heavier) guitar riffs, phat drum grooves and thick bass lines (yes, the ‘ph’ is always necessary, we assure you), and the front-and-centre vocal style of your typical mainstream rock/metal sound completely dominate this album throughout. But it's executed in such a high standard that it prevents it from falling into sheer mediocrity, like the last AC/DC album, for example. *shudders*

Sure, for the most part, this album is heavier than Alter Bridge and far more intense than anything Creed ever did and that is definitely to the strength of both Tremonti and ‘Dust’. In all honesty, this writer was never a big fan of Creed or AB, as he finds that the style of rock those bands play can be pretty cliché and cheesy at the best of times, and predictable in other occasions. But Tremonti’s third outing, while definitely not unique and at times also predictable, manages to avoid being cheesy, corny, cliche, and all of those other pitfalls that many similar rock bands fall into.

Again joining the guitarist/vocalist is bassist Wolfgang Van Halen, drummer Garrett Whitlock and guitarist Eric Friedman. Now, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that the musical talent is there, and thankfully, the songs are up all to scratch as well. As for these ten songs, the album does not disappoint as every one of its tracks are consistent, in fact, we'd go so far as to say this record is devoid of any filler.

Of course, we do have our favourite songs. Namely the title track, ‘Tore My Heart Out’ and ‘Unable To See’ are indeed the slower and more “dynamic” songs of the bunch, and are easily the most "single" worthy songs, but even so, that doesn't discredit what are easily the very best cuts off the record. Even the more straight up rock songs like 'The Cage', 'My Last Mistake', 'Catching Fire', and the punishing 'Betrayal' get notable mentions.

Actually, fuck it. This whole record is great. Just go listen to the whole thing.

There are countless alternative hard rock/metal bands, both old and new, and sometimes it's difficult to filter through the crowd and find the good ones. Despite your thoughts on Creed and Alter Bridge, Tremonti’s solo work is some of the best music the guitarist has to his name. Original? No. Good music? Fuck yeah. So in summary, this is one of those distinguished reactions between having the right musicians, the right mix, and the right songs to create a great record.

1. My Last Mistake

2. The Cage

3. Once Dead

4. Dust

5. Betray Me

6. Tore My Heart Out

7. Catching Fire

8. Never Wrong

9. Rising Storm

10. Unable To See