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Black Box Recordings -- Living With Lions
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With a conglomeration of southern Californian bands including the Rx Bandits, Finch, and Circa Survive starting a project, what would you expect as a resultant sound?

You're probably not thinking prog-rock. You're also probably thinking that two-thirds of the members here are completely incapable of pulling something like that off.

Well, you're wrong. Kinda.

When the Sound Of Animals Fighting is constructing actual songs, the band is superb. Everything from the very Bandits-like riffing and Mars Volta-esque soloing of Matt Embree to the wailing vocal style of Anthony Green (Circa Surive, ex-Saosin) is absolutely on, especially with Green's style complimenting everything else perfectly. He sounds like he's having epileptic fits as a cast of characters behind him - all going by various animals themselves, including Green - slap together frenetic, atmospheric guitars and fussy drum work. Though the four songs here are basically just slightly reworked versions of the demos that started to float around late last year, the improvement in production is just enough to at least increase enjoyability and make more sense overall, with a changed or extended part here or there. For example, the instrumental before the first official verse and the bridge in "Act I: Chasing Suns" is dragged out a bit more, but in a really good way, especially when you're basically lead to believe that Carlos Santana himself is lending a hand to the guitar parts in the bridge, though it essentially sounds like the same influence present on TMV's De-loused... "So what's the problem?!," a hundred screen-glued readers cry. Well, friends, interludes.

Tiger And The Duke is really a glorified EP. The four "real" songs on here are all separated by electronic interludes that carry little-to-no regard for thematic connectivity sound-wise, and make up nearly half the length of the album. This is essentially an EP with filler masquerading as part of the "[fusion of] electronic, hardcore and progressive music" when the album could've been so much more had actual song craft been chosen over what currently resides in its place. The only consideration for cohesiveness is really represenative in "Act IV: You Don't Need A Witness," whose introductory riffs are actually just reused from "Act I," giving the album what would be sort of a "full circle" feel had it not been for the five-minute long "Postlude" that concludes the disc, which contains a whole lot of senseless, electronic noodling. All the programming here is basically random noises that contain no sound-wise affiliation with its supposed partners on the disc.

In the end, we're left with an album that falls far short of its potential. TSOAF definitely have the talent and creativity, as shown on all four Acts here, to paint a portrait of highly enjoyable progressive rock, with much more of a lively character than most prog delivers. Even with the influences present, everything that makes rock good, causing both air drum/guitar playing alike and spastic singing along is in the real songs, just with irritable intermissions disrupting flow and failing to qualify as anything more than bad acid trips.

STREAM
Album sampler



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    Posted by radicalwhore on 2007-02-04 00:31:24

    the sound of animals fighting really know what they're doing when it comes to music, and this album shows it. The songs are very original and performed with great talent. This album flows like water even with the intermissions between each song. This is definitely a true great work of musical genius.

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, February 12, 2006 at 5:52 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    TSOAF goes beyond any genre. It is a little similar to TMV in sound, but TMV is a littlo more jazzy; there is no band that can reach TMV's quality in lyric writing. The person who wrote the review is a very superficial idiot, his intelect is far above. Never write about things you don't understand.

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, February 12, 2006 at 1:10 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    This review, in my eyes, misses the point of the album. This "EP" was collaborated by many young and very talented artists who are trying to go beyond the catagorized genres of music. The interludes take you into a diffrent style of music which emphasizes the musical genious of the four Acts. Instead of continuing with the same hard-rock/prog-rock ambience for an entire album. Why does one record have to have one tone the entire way through?

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, February 3, 2006 at 7:44 AM (EST)

    this cd is awesome. it's unlike any other that i've ever seen before. the actual songs are amazing, especially since they never actually met when recording & basically improved the whole thing. it took me a while to find this cd, but i actually ended up purchasing it at hot topic for pretty cheap. it's definetly worth buying.

    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, January 16, 2006 at 1:54 PM (EST)

    simply amazing, act 1:chasing the sun combines a sence of disorder with amazing and powerful vocals.as does the whole cd

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, January 5, 2006 at 10:39 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    dude this rawked

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, January 5, 2006 at 10:39 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    dude this rawked

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, January 5, 2006 at 10:39 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    dude this rawked

    Posted by thejewvolta on 2005-12-22 21:23:30
    My Score:

    An amazing album
    the musicianship will blow your mind

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, December 18, 2005 at 5:55 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    all of u ass holes who may think this is shit and have no sence in good music, first read the story behind this album, THEN write what u think about it, because this it story, is one hell of a good one. Act III, sooooo fucking good.

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, December 18, 2005 at 5:52 AM (EST)

    oh my fucking god! i have never, but listen 2 me when i say this, NEVER, have been more impresed by music, this album is simply put..incradible.

    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, December 12, 2005 at 10:23 PM (EST)

    i think that sound of animals fighting is one of the best band ever

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, December 8, 2005 at 8:50 AM (EST)

    this album is amazing....i have a cousin in a band called like lions formerly the guitarist in days away. hes been good friends with green for quite some time now and ive had the pleasure of meeting him a few times. hes the coolest guy i kno. and i respect everything hes does. he pulls off being in circa , tsoaf, and still does solo shit.....the kid is a fukin genius. he also does some bak up vocals in my cousins band now. but i thought this shit about who was in this band was a secret......seems like everyone knows now. lol. he had told me that he was doing a side project called the sound of animals fight a while back but didt mention who else was in it except rich balling. i dont really kno what he was thinking when he thought no one was going to know that it was him rippin on the vocals. lol..cuz uh....u can deffinatly tell his voice anywere. but everyone in tsoaf is amazing and i love all their work, well if the people in tsoaf are really the ones that everyone says like members of finch and all then i do. ive ben following finch for a while too. amazing. the mars volta. amazing.... rx......amazing....everything about this band i respect considering they r doing it for the music and not the faces.....if u r really into music for the music then u will no wat i mean wen i say "they r in it for the music and not the faces" keep listening and chek out my cousins band if u got the time....www.myspace.com/likelions .......www.purevolume.com/likelions ,,,,,my cuzin is the singer and u can hear greens bak up vocals towards the end of the songs cheap seats, and sweetside. keep it real everyone

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, November 30, 2005 at 4:10 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    This album is badass. It is one of the most musically tallented rock cds I've ever heard and easy to groove to. I love it.

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, October 9, 2005 at 3:19 PM (EDT)

    i hate people talking shit on the review for not "understanding the intention" of the band or that bullshit. bottom line, the reviewer reviewed the music and the songs were good but the overall album was droppped by the crappy electronic stuff

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, September 28, 2005 at 4:44 PM (EDT)

    This is a great CD and for those who didnt know Anthony was originally in Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer, and yes also saosin and circa survive. And to the person that said the band wasnt called The Sound of Animals fighting.....your wrong lol that is the name of the band. Great CD though I have been following Anthony through all of his bands and just plain enjoy any project that he is in, hes got an amazing voice.

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, August 4, 2005 at 6:07 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    This is an amazing band and an amazing album... It's like TMV meets Refused meets Pink Floyd...

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, June 29, 2005 at 4:43 PM (EDT)

    anyone like to tell me where i can buy this thing? i've heard a few songs but i want the whole thing man. email me and tell me where you got it. theacidntundrwtr@yahoo.com

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, June 24, 2005 at 10:34 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    I got this cd a few days ago, a freind showed them to me and I absolutely love this album.

    Posted by colossalbandit on 2005-06-08 20:59:35

    if the author of this review understood the intention of this release, the score would be more reflective of the work as a whole.. this is a terrible review... do your research

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, June 2, 2005 at 6:43 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    Wow. This is the worst ensemble of "music" i have ever heard. The story is not even cute/sensible/worth anthing, and the layer upon layer upon layer of noise is pitiful. And i love how everyone compares it to TMV.

    Progressive music, my ass.

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, April 30, 2005 at 10:06 AM (EDT)

    the band is called tiger and the duke. the cd is called the sound of animals fighting. tards.

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, April 30, 2005 at 12:57 AM (EDT)

    ok, this is how this came along:

    the dude from rx bandits had this crazy idea, and called in the drummer. he had the drummer chill in the studio and just play shit for like, 2 days. then, he called in the guitar player. he'd already made loops and shit of some of the drum parts, and pretty much had him do the same thing, but over the drums they'd recorded. he'd be like, "play in the dorian scale, d minor" and shit like that and they'd do it. being a musician that knows theory and composition, this is what really makes me respect some of the members of this band. so, anyways. they've got all these parts, and they call in the other guitarist. he plays over the shit that's already played, and they do the same with bass and the singer.

    and the cd kicks ass. if you just consider it an ep, i guess. i love act II, the intro is so cool.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, April 19, 2005 at 10:37 PM (EDT)

    i just heard this today. i actually enjoy the electronic interludes, along with the rest of the songs. not too bad for what bands this is made up from.

    -greyicewater

    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, April 11, 2005 at 12:37 AM (EDT)

    Ok...for all of you who obviously need some attention to this band. First off, they are simply amazing. I love The Fall Of Troy (for all of you who posted earlier) but they do not even compare to T.S.O.A.F. Second of all, there isn't one singer, there isn't two either, there are 3. Anthony (Circa Survive), Rich (formerly RX Bandits / Cowboy Communism) and some other guy who was formerly in the Hippos. There are 2 guys from Finch (the bassist and one of the guitarists) and 2 from RX Bandits (the singer and the drummer). So there's some schooling for all of you who were wondering. Peace out ya'll.

    Posted by letskissthesky10 on 2005-04-03 03:06:44
    My Score:

    despite the fact that there's only 4 actual songs on here i still like it.

    the experimental engineering isn't really my bag, but i like how all of the songs are different yet the same.

    it's a good cd

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, April 3, 2005 at 12:55 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    There are two singers fool

    Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, March 27, 2005 at 10:16 PM (EST)

    ok so first of all.. this is not an RX bandits side project. this shows how much you kids know about music. Anthony Green (old singer of Saosin and the singer of Circa Survie) is the singer for this band.

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, March 24, 2005 at 2:53 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    This album was awesome. You can hear the Bandits influence in the interludes and the vocals are chilling. Great start to a band that will hopefully be around for a while.

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, March 18, 2005 at 8:49 AM (EST)

    Is this the first sign that the TMV sound and story telling will eventually become a cliché? This beats any modern screamo rock? Well the artificial harmonics are sick on this CD. This is a must check out if you’re an inspiring musician trying to learn from the something different??

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, March 5, 2005 at 8:42 PM (EST)

    The riffs and lyrics are awsome and super catchy i would recommend the sound of animals fighting to anyone who likes the mars volta and catchy scream-o bands

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, March 5, 2005 at 11:54 AM (EST)
    My Score:

    insanely sweet.

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, March 4, 2005 at 1:22 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    isnt a member of Finch in this band?

    the whole idea is pretty cool

    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, February 19, 2005 at 6:15 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    I thought this was basically rich ballings ex-rx bandits solo project, and that he just invited some firends to help him with it.

    Posted by throughmyheartxx on 2005-02-18 19:05:36
    My Score:

    swingline your a pig!!!
    hahahaha
    ...MORON im not a fucking emo kid either

    Posted by Anonymous on Friday, February 18, 2005 at 12:35 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    i know who's in this band... it's a super secret! whoooaaaaa!!

    Posted by swingline on 2005-02-17 17:46:16
    My Score:

    throughmyheartxx ... what do you know.. generic emo kid.

    Posted by throughmyheartxx on 2005-02-16 18:30:37
    My Score:

    The sound of animals fighting owns !!!!

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, February 16, 2005 at 6:04 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    "Speaking of the Fall Of Troy, when are the Ghostship demos going to materialize into an album?"

    seriously!

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, February 15, 2005 at 10:05 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    so who exactly is in this band???

    Posted by ElVaquero on 2005-02-15 21:49:47
    My Score:

    I'm listening to this and it really is pretty fucking weak. Ignoring the interludes even, the songs aren't that great. The first is pretty good, but the second just kinda drags. Damn. Better luck next time, even if it's not going to happen.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, February 15, 2005 at 8:53 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    animal colective fucking slay them

    Posted by Big_Guy on 2005-02-15 17:37:05
    My Score:

    who exactly is in this band?

    I like what I've heard so far.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, February 15, 2005 at 4:23 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    i basically thought the same exact thing as this review.

    Posted by theundergroundscene on 2005-02-15 14:49:54
    My Score:

    hopefully soon because those songs fucking rock

    Posted by ElVaquero on 2005-02-15 13:14:49
    My Score:

    Speaking of the Fall Of Troy, when are the Ghostship demos going to materialize into an album?

    Posted by theundergroundscene on 2005-02-15 09:59:12
    My Score:

    huge ripoff of the fall of troy

    but they're okay

    Posted by Bosco on 2005-02-15 08:49:47
    My Score:

    I wasn't really sure what to think of this band when it was first reported here, mostly because of my doubts in Finch and [at the time] Anthony Green. His vocals have really grown on me though, and the RxBandits shine.

    The actual songs on here are excellent, but you're right the interludes and postlude become a bit tiresome after a while.

    Posted by stevejonestherealbones on 2005-02-15 02:48:34
    My Score:

    it was inspired by bear vs shark

    - jones the bones

    - stevejones8770@yahoo.com

    Posted by hubitcherkokov on 2005-02-15 01:45:14
    My Score:

    I love their name.

    Posted by stevejonestherealbones on 2005-02-15 01:37:15
    My Score:

    *anything new

    Posted by stevejonestherealbones on 2005-02-15 01:36:54
    My Score:

    i dont know if they will ever record anything, but the 4 songs are decent on their own, all the bullshit kind of pisses me off though.

    - jones the bones

    - stevejones8770@yahoo.com

    Posted by ElVaquero on 2005-02-15 01:27:18
    My Score:

    I hope they get better. Really good vocals.

    Posted by swingline on 2005-02-15 00:41:21
    My Score:

    shit shit shit