''The Trigger Complex'' is the tenth studio album by American
punk rock band
T.S.O.L.
T.S.O.L. (True Sounds of Liberty) is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Long Beach, California. Although most commonly associated with hardcore punk, T.S.O.L.'s music has varied on each release, including such styles as deathrock, ...
(True Sounds of Liberty). It was released in 2017 under the
Rise
Rise or RISE may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities
* '' Rise: The Vieneo Province'', an internet-based virtual world
* Rise FM, a fictional radio station in the video game ''Grand Theft Auto 3''
* Rise Kujikawa, a vide ...
label and produced by
Paul Roessler
Paul Roessler (born August 27, 1958) is an American musician and record producer. Roessler was a prominent member of the L.A. punk scene during the late 1970s and 1980s. He played keyboards in bands such as The Screamers, Twisted Roots, 45 Grav ...
.
Overview
''The Trigger Complex'' has been described as "melodic", "
anthemic
"Anthemic" is a song by live electronic music project Magnetic Man. It is the fourth single to be released from the debut album '' Magnetic Man'' and was released as a digital download on 22 July 2011. For its release, grime rapper P Money was a ...
", and "simplistic" with a
classic rock
Classic rock is a US radio format which developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, the classic rock format comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the mid 1990s, prim ...
-inspired sound.
The album is reminiscent of early-80s punk and goth bands including
The Damned,
Billy Idol
William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is a British-American singer, songwriter, and musician. He first achieved fame in the 1970s emerging from the London punk rock scene as the lead singer o ...
,
The Cult
The Cult are an English rock band formed in 1983 in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Before settling on their current name in January 1984, the band performed under the name Death Cult, which was an evolution of the name of lead singer Ian Astbury' ...
and
Social Distortion
Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness (lead vocals, lead guitar), Jonny Wickersham (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), Brent Harding (bass, backing vo ...
.
Reception
The album received mixed to positive reviews from music critics. ''Punk News'' said there was a lot of stuff to like about the album and gave it 3 and a half stars.
''Kerrang UK'' called the album "disappointing" while also noting that there were brief "moments" in songs like "Satellites" and "Why Can't We Do It Again". They gave the album 2 out of 5 stars.
''Cryptic Rock'' gave ''The Trigger Complex'' 5 stars while noting that the band delivered on their aim for the album.
Tracklist
Credits
;T.S.O.L.
*
Jack Grisham
Jack Grisham (born July 22, 1961) is an American rock vocalist, musician, raconteur and political activist from Southern California. He is the vocalist for the punk rock band T.S.O.L. (True Sounds of Liberty), which emerged from the late 1970s L ...
– vocals, composition
*
Chip Hanna – drums
*
Greg Kuehn
Gregory Russell Kuehn is an American composer, songwriter, musician and producer.
Career As a performing musician
Kuehn's career began in Orange County's early punk scene, when he left his classical piano studies at California State Universit ...
– keyboards, piano, composition
* Mike Roche – bass guitar, composition
*
Ron Emory
Ron Emory (born May 20, 1962, Lynwood, California, United States) is an American rock musician and guitarist for the punk rock band T.S.O.L. (True Sounds of Liberty). An original member of the band, founded in Southern California in 1979, Emor ...
– guitars, composition
;Non-Members
*
Frank Agnew
Francis Thomas "Frank" Agnew (born August 18, 1964) is an American guitarist and songwriter, best known for being a member of punk rock band the Adolescents. Frank's brothers Rikk Agnew and Alfie Agnew, as well as his son Frank Agnew Jr., are al ...
– guitar, backing vocals, composition
* Beth Carmellini – backing vocals
* Alex Deyoung – mastering
* Jenni McElrath – backing vocals
* Paul Roessler – keyboards, production, backing vocals, mixing
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trigger Complex
2017 albums
Rise Records albums
Gothic rock albums by American artists
T.S.O.L. albums
Hard rock albums by American artists