Ballbustin' beats, stompin' lows, crunchin' chords and the powerfully expressive pipes of namesake Tracey Sage navigate your eardrums through a quintet of hyperenergetic vignettes on the Chicago-based melodic metal quartet's second EP. Mike Walsh's guitar craft is the other major attraction here; Walsh and the rhythm section of Rob Thompson on bass and Eric Ganci on skins effect a sonic onslaught that's not altogether new, by any stretch, but it's certainly palatable and then some — Ganci's machine-gun drumming quickly makes its point.
No long track this time out, but In Vain is an obvious one-up over its predecessor. Los quatro sages are poised to double their fan base with some rip-roarin' songs: "Graves" is the closest we'll probably come to hearing how Maynard James Keenan — one of Tracey's chief influences — might sound had he been born with ovaries. Tracey's Keenan-meets-Natalie Merchant expressiveness is at its zenith on the exhilarating single. Additional synthesizer embellishment brings the song nearer APC, so to speak, and lyrically it's not that far removed, either. "Manifest Destiny," "Backbone" and "Out Of Body" are calling card-enabled clenched fists brimming with vocal and fretboard chops. With a reprise of an Indian scale, it'll be a close call between the title track and "Graves" for most Sage-fans' new favorite song. Thankfully, Sage remains unhindered by goth trappings or overtly macho posturing, maintaining music as a focal point while recalling the coolness of '90s all-girl thrash outfit Ordained Fate.
Tracklist:
1. Manifest Destiny (3:07)
2. Graves (4:25)
3. Backbone (3:11)
4. Out Of Body (3:57)
5. In Vain (4:15)
Total time – 19:01
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