100. The Tea Party - Transmission (1997)
Track Listing:
01. Temptation
02. Army Ants
03. Psychopomp
04. Gyroscope
05. Alarum
06. Release
07. Transmission
08. Babylon
09. Pulse
10. Emerald
11. Aftermath
Genre: Hard Rock
The Tea Party was a Canadian rock band that was active from 1990 - 2005 with
Seven Circles being their final album. The Tea Party consisted of Jeff Martin (Vocals/Guitar), Stuart Chatwood (Bass), and Jeff Burrows (drums). Out of all the popular rock bands to come out of Canada during the '90's (Sloan, Big Sugar, Our Lady Peace), The Tea Party were one of the most experimental in their sounds. While they were best known for the 1999 single "Heaven Coming Down" off their 5th album
Triptych, I was always more fond of their earlier albums.
The Tea Party's early material was heavily influenced by Middle Eastern and Indian music, utilizing foreign instruments like sitars, sarods, and goblet drums in their music. This really helped differentiate themselves from the legions of other alternative rock bands attempting to make a name for themselves in the '90's. Their 1995 album,
The Edges of Twilight started this trend, with
Transmission continuing the trend and adding electronic elements to the sound.
Transmission has always been my favorite Tea Party album, with each member at the height of their game. Jeff Martin's baritone voice is both soothing and commanding, leaving you hanging onto every word he is saying, making following the lyrics very easy. Adding the electronic undertones to their already downtuned instruments works very well, leaving you wondering what is electronically done and what is just downtuned fuzzy goodness.
In terms of writing, it is probably Jeff Martin's best effort to date (although I have yet to check out his solo material). The lyrics lean towards a melon collie feel, yet the deliver adds this glimmer that not all is wasted and that there is hope in the world. The ability to balance both the sh
it that comes with life, and the willpower to not only face it but overcome it is rare in a lot of song writers.
The tracks all flow into each other quite nicely and none of them feel like they're artificially lengthened, ending often when you expect them to. Only a few slower songs on the album exist and even then they're quite melodic and enjoyable.
Honestly in all truth this album should be on everyone's hard drive if they were born between the 1970's - 2000. It encompasses so much of the '90's in it, yet is hardly ever mentioned because it is Canadian and therefore deemed unimportant in the grand scheme of music. If you wrote off The Tea Party after hearing the overplayed "Heaven Coming Down" song, then you're doing yourself a disservice. The Tea Party fit a very peculiar niche in the music market, straddling that fine line between good music and mainstream music, finding a unique balance in the middle. Certainly worth a look if you're unfamiliar with the band in general or only familiar with their later material.