Artist: Exotic Animal Petting Zoo Album: Tree of Tongues

Year: 2012
Duration: 0:0-1

A Critical Review of Exotic Animal Petting Zoo's Album: Tree of Tongues

If you're a fan of experimental rock music, then it's highly likely that you've heard about the band Exotic Animal Petting Zoo. These Arizona-based musicians have been making music since 2004 with several EPs and albums under their belt. One of their most notable works is the 2012 album Tree of Tongues, which is highly revered by many experimental music enthusiasts. In this blog post, we'll be taking a critical look at this album, its genre, the artist's history, the best songs of the album, the most innovative parts, and our personal critique of the work of art.

Exotic Animal Petting Zoo belongs to the genre of a sprawling subgenre of rock music called math rock. In simple terms, math rock is characterized by complex, rhythmically intricate compositions that generally incorporate time signature changes, atypical instrumental techniques, and unconventional song structures. The genre typically features unconventional chords, irregular song forms, and intricate melodies. Tree of Tongues, the album in question, is a superb example of math rock.

As mentioned earlier, Exotic Animal Petting Zoo is an Arizona-based three-piece ensemble that features Stephen James and Cameron Jones on guitars and vocals, while Aaron Parks plays the drums. They're known for their complex and challenging compositions that are quite pleasing to the ear and impressive to the brain. It's no surprise that they're often compared to another famous math-rock outfit, The Mars Volta.

The album Tree of Tongues has nine tracks, each of which is a cohesive blend of the band's signature math rock sound, atmospheric post-rock, and crushing metal riffs. The tunes on this album are extremely intricate and complex, with each member of the band displaying their excellent musicianship and remarkable creativity.

The best tracks on this album are hard to pick as each song has its own strengths and unique flavors. However, Asterixxx, Seeds, and Whores of Babel stand out for their impressive riffs, unusual instrumental techniques, and intricate structures. Still, any of the other songs on the album is worth a listen.

One of the most innovative parts of the album is the way the band manages to incorporate atmospheric post-rock elements within the overall math-rock sound. The album's slower moments are very effective, building significant momentum and atmosphere while still maintaining a strong mathematical undercurrent.

On the critical side, while Tree of Tongues is an inventive and remarkable album that's hard not to appreciate, it can be a bit inaccessible to the untrained ear. The complexity of the tracks can quickly become overwhelming or even off-putting for newcomers to the math-rock genre. It's best to give the album a few more listenings to properly appreciate the nuances of each song.

To summarize, Exotic Animal Petting Zoo's Tree of Tongues is an exceptional math-rock album worthy of inclusion in any fan's music collection. It's an ingenious blend of intricate instrumental techniques, atmospheric post-rock, and crushing metal riffs that showcase the band's skillful musicianship and creativity. The album's complexity may not appeal to all listeners, but those who have the patience to sit down and unravel the compositions' nuances will come away with a newfound appreciation for the artistry involved. All in all, Tree of Tongues is a challenging yet satisfying musical experience that's hard to ignore.