T.O.M.B – Thin The Veil

Eleven tracks. Nearly forty-five minutes of runtime. Such is the offering presented from US-based T.O.M.B as the calender drags into the year 2020, at the same time marking the Industrial Black Metal bands 22^nd consecutive year as entertainers. Said offering takes the shape of a Full-Length record (the sixth of its kind) simply entitled Thin The Veil.

Now, despite having come into fruiton near the end of the Second Wave Era, T.O.M.B has taken a somewhat different approach to their music; Namely, the very Industrial approach which, granted, does give the band a more ‘modern’ feel in many aspects. Aside from that, Thin The Veil contains all the aspects that I have come to expect from a band such as T.O.M.B: The music is fast-paced, aggressive, heavily distorted and the vocals function more akin to another instrument as opposed to a centre-piece as is often the case. So far, so good. Where the album differs, however, is in the (or rather, the lack of) grittiness. The trio has managed to make a very well-polished and well-rounded album, hitting all the notes that I would both expect and love. I find them a bit lacking, however, in terms of presence – By which I mean a personal touch.

Granted, I have never come across a band quite like T.O.M.B before. The Industrial edge draws parallels to early Dimmu Borgir, but are still significantly different in many aspects – Just not enough to make them stand out within a genre that is permeated with powerful personas, bands and talented musicians. This is where, in my opinion, the American trio falls a bit short. Points for effort as well as talent (since there is no doubt that they know what they are doing overall) and experience – In many ways, Thin The Veil contains many very good by-the-numbers Black Metal tracks, and I did enjoy the experience. Problem is even now, after close to a dozen playthroughs, I still cannot find something unique and tangible that sets this band above the rest for me. I enjoy their music, but if I ended up hearing one of their tracks at a bar one evening, I am afraid that I would not be able to pin-point it as a track from T.O.M.B. That being said, given the chance to see them perform, I would most certainly go. They really do deliver an energetic performance.

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