Tarot is a band who, up until a few weeks ago, I had never heard of. That all changed when I got a press release courtesy of the good folks at Cruz del Sur Music who, as of late, have been absolutely killing it. Between Mega Colossus’s Showdown, Tonnerre’s La nuit sauvage, and Attacker’s The God Particle, they’ve already provided us with enough metallic goodness to make up the front half of our 2024 year end list, and it’s only April. Well ladies and gentlemen, we can now add yet another release to this bunch, and it is quite a doozy.
Hailing from the land down under, Tarot formed in 2011, but sounds like they formed in 1971. Their latest album, Glimpse of the Dawn, is their second full length and their first release since 2016’s Reflections. Now I’ve never listened to Reflections, nor am I familiar with whatever activities the members of Tarot have kept themselves busy with in the 8 years since. That said, if 8 years is how long it takes to formulate a ’70s metal voyage of this caliber, it was well worth the wait.
When reviewing a ’70s metal album, it’s easy to draw comparisons to the gods of yore. For example, one can say Glimpse draws heavily from the mystical well of Uriah Heep. Indeed, cuts like the opening title cut, “The Winding Road”, and “The Vagabond’s Return” boast the punchy guitar riffs, driving organs, and dramatic arrangements of the whimsical pioneers at their most enchanted. There are also, however, shades of Wishbone Ash’s pastoral atmosphere (“Leshy’s Warning”), Dio era Rainbow’s heavy rocking disposition (“Dreamer in the Dark”), and Peter Gabriel era Genesis’s progressive theatrics (the entire album). Now sounding like any of these bands on record is one thing. Pulling it off to the extent Tarot does is another.
The songwriting, performances, and production on Glimpse is something to behold, making it an utter ’70s metal marvel for the ages. Tarot’s fusion of the metal, hard rock, and prog that made the era so special is utterly seamless and needs to be heard to be believed. Over the course of any given song, or in the case of this album, suite, one can pick up anything from proto-epic metal valor to cerebral folk rock bliss, sometimes within the same song, er, suite! The closing “Heavy Weighs the Crown” drives this adventurous spirit home in grandiose fashion, treating us to some righteous twin guitar leads that are bound to go down in history.
Indeed, the crown is heavy, but Tarot wears it so well. If the “rock is dead” naysayer crop is so easily pleased by Greta Van Fleet, then Tarot is likely to send them into a full blown coma. The ’70s may now be five decades past, but the magic of the music and the era is eternal. Be sure to put on your highest quality pair of headphones and, if “Sweet Leaf” is your thing, roll up a fat joint. You’re gonna need it for this sonic trip MAN!
10 out of 10
Label: Cruz del Sur Music
Genre: Heavy Metal/Hard Rock
For fans of: Uriah Heep, Rainbow, Wishbone Ash
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