Tribe 11 exploded on the scene in 2006 with their indie debut, “Six Degrees of Desperation.” The album offers an intoxicating, and often haunting mix of sound and lyric, penned by the band’s front man, Steven Webster. “Six Degrees of Desperation” is receiving rave reviews and radio airplay around the globe, fuelled in part by the reach of the Internet.
Production and engineering on “Six Degrees of Desperation” is by Everett Ravestein (Canada’s Rush, Barenaked Ladies, Chantal Kreviazuk). Fans compare the music to classic acts like Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd mixed with later influences like Jane’s Addiction, the Smashing Pumpkins, Radiohead and Queens of the Stone Age. Yet, Tribe 11 is no re-hashed imitation. Fans and critics agree that Tribe 11’s impressive debut forges a path all its own.
While the songs and sounds on “Six Degrees of Desperation” are varied, nothing seems out of place or at odds with each other. According to Webster, “My goal with this album was to conjure a real and metaphoric ‘line’ or link between the music and the listener. Lyrically, there’s a strong sense of lineage, of threads, that gets woven into the music and in a larger sense between the tracks to create an ‘album.’ That is important. It seems like no one in the mainstream makes albums anymore – it’s all about the single, and that’s a shame.”
Tribe 11 also features the talents of Toronto-area musicians Tom Lewis on bass Russell Gray on guitar, and Owen Durkin on drums. “What’s interesting is that instead of a band writing and rehearsing a set of songs, Tribe 11 began as a set of songs and the band evolved around them with the addition of players over time,” notes Webster. “There was a very fluid sense of possibility in everything coming together, with the focus being on the quality of the music. Today we’re a pretty close-knit group, but as we’re rehearsing new material for the follow up album it still feels like we’re evolving the sound and coming together around the songs all over again.”
Fusing aspects of alternative, classic rock, prog rock, folk, and blues, there is a constant tension in Tribe 11’s music that pushes and pulls between a bubbling simmer and an explosive boiling over. “Both elements are always there,” according to Webster. “Even when the guitars are screaming and the band is at full throttle, there are still the simmering subtleties that can be heard in the background. This is essential to me because it connects the music to the lyrics, both of which should be a journey toward clarity – not something that is appealing only at a surface level and then quickly becomes tiring, forgotten.”
In this vein, Webster cites his approach to music as his same philosophical approach to life generally. “I am inspired by the writings of Simone Weil and the implications behind ideas like ‘superstring theory.’ They instill in me the idea that only in the quiet absence of everything is it possible to perceive anything,
while, in the noisy abundance of everything there is an overwhelming perception of absence. Tribe 11 attempts to bridge the gulf between both those worlds.”
Contact Information for Tribe 11:
Web: www.tribe11.com
MySpace: www.myspace.com/tribe11music
Recent Reviews
Tribe ll’s material is diverse, shifting from straight-ahead rock to pieces with electronic space and world music elements with ease. Six Degrees
of Desperation is reminiscent of albums from a time when bands were not afraid to experiment or stretch beyond the expected borders of their sound…an impressive debut album.
Bill Knispel, ProgScape.com USA
A great post punk/rock album that shows that these guys have not sold out to the mainstream. With just the right amount of METAL, this album
could go far.
Tony Bates, Highlands lOO.7 FM Australia
Good songs with beautiful lyrics.
Jaap Hoek, Alphenstad FM Netherlands
It may sound trite but the saying "All Killer, no filler" applies to this CD. Let's talk tunes. Singer/Writer Steven Webster has written lO wonderful highly melodic vignettes. The arrangements are well thought out perfectly
executed. The lyrics are thoughtful, enticing and personal without being at all pretentious…I highly recommend this CD in any type of Rock format.
Richard Bell, Rock Nation Radio Canada
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