It takes a certain kind of courage to be unapologetically pretentious in rock & roll, but with their debut full-length, Los Angeles alterna-proggers
Opus Däi are unafraid to take that risk. In many ways an American version of
Radiohead (they have a similar ability to twist straightforward pop hooks into unexpected new shapes), the band is superficially also similar to folks like
System of a Down or
the Mars Volta, with the metal and occasional
Frank Zappa influences this implies. The problem with
Tierra Trágame is that the best songs here are the simplest, like the genuinely affecting power ballad "Nightingale." More complex and showoffy material like "Bella Christa" doesn't hold as much appeal, thanks to overblown, stentorian vocals and too much reliance on faux-dramatic dynamic shifts. ~ Stewart Mason