Rough Edge: Tilt 360 CD Reviews

TILT 360

"Day 11" (Love Muffin Records; 2008)

There's always a concern after reviewing a promising EP that the follow-up won't be able to hold its quality for the entire running time of a full-length. I'm happy to report that is not the case with Tilt 360's "Day 11."

On "Day 11," Tilt 360 continue to pound out the modern metal they introduced us to on "Point Blank" but here they do it for a full 11 tracks. The band is perhaps best known for its song "Point Blank," which boxer Kelly "The Ghost" Pavlik picked up and used as a theme song and the boxing connection is appropriate. Whereas the "Point Blank" EP left you wanting more, much of "Day 11" pretty much pummels you mercilessly, leaving you stumbling, punch drunk in the ring. Unlike most boxers in that condition, however, with "Day 11" you'll still want more.

Not all of the tracks here are that brutal. A few tracks, like "Last String" and "The Ride Down," take things down a notch or two, but never, thankfully, into what you'd call "ballad" territory. The haunting "In a Room" will gently force its irresistible chorus into your brain and lodge it there for days. Throughout the CD, however, the word "modern" comes to mind. This is today's hard rock / heavy metal, not yesterday's. Those expecting something along the lines of 80s metal probably won't find what they're looking for on "Day 11."

With "Day 11," Tilt 360 have not only proved they've got the talent to deliver a full-length CD that's as exciting as their four track EP, they've proven that they're a force to be reckoned with in the future of the genre.

Tilt 360: Bill Smaltz - vocals and left hooks; Jay Miller - guitars and bartering; Drew Salzano - bass lines and mad looks; Heather Jurina - drums and goodbyes.

For more information, check out http://www.tilt360.net.

"Point Blank" (Entropi Records; 2006)

Reviewed by R. Scott Bolton

This four track EP from Ohio rockers Tilt 360 starts off with the bruising title track, a powerful song that sets you up for a CD that melds Korn with Metallica and boasts enough power to split your stereo speakers like a hot steak knife through a Porterhouse made of butter.

Then track two, "Long Road," comes around, and you almost wonder if you're listening to another band. It's an easy, ballad-y rocker that brings to mind some of the solo work of Alice in Chains' Jerry Cantrell. It's an interesting juxtaposition.

But then track three, "Remain with Grey," starts and, man, we're right back in the crushingly heavy mode (albeit not quite as heavy as "Point Blank"). The vocals here are more ethereal and haunting than the earlier, heavier track but the choruses are pulverizing walls of controlled sound.

What will track four bring? It starts out with a almost jaunty bass line that soon boils into yet another solid rocker, this one highlighted by electric fretwork. This track feels a little like a good Tool track.

All four songs have that modern edge that makes them sound fresh but not so fresh that they fall into the "sounds too much like (fill in the blank)..." category.

So what do these four tracks tell you about Tilt 360? That this is a band with impressive talent both as musicians and songwriters and that just four songs is never enough.

Tilt 360: Bill Smaltz - Vocals; Drew Salzano - Bass; Jay Miller - Guitar; Heather Jurina - Drums.

For more information, check out www.myspace.com/officialtilt360.

Rating Guide:

A classic. This record will kick your ass.

Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.

So-so. You've heard better.

Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.

Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.

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