Now six albums into their career, guitarist/vocalist Mark Tremonti and his 'solo band' have built up an impressive resume of releases that show this band isn't merely here to fill in some time between Alter Bridge or Creed tours and albums. While there is a certain musical element that feels similar across all three bands, historically, the Tremonti band was always meant to provide a place for Mark to get his extra special 'heavy' on with material that didn't quite fit in Alter Bridge. I've always found that to be a strange take, as much of the Alter Bridge material is quite heavy at times, though always melodic and memorable. With Tremonti, the guitarist has been able to dial up the 'metal' if he so chose, yet here with The End Will Show Us How, despite some quality metal in spots, I'm finding less to distinguish between Tremonti, Alter Bridge, and even Creed. Roughly half the album are high energy yet moody crushers, the others are more atmospheric, dreamy hard rock fare with the type of choruses that you would expect from this talented musician and his band. One thing that Creed, Alter Bridge, and Tremonti has never lacked is quality and memorable hooks. Tracks like "One More Time", "Nails", "I'll Take My Chances", "The Bottom", and "Live in Fear" are easily the crunchiest numbers here, chock full of fist-pumping, anthemic choruses and crushing riffs & solos, while other effective songs, such as "The Mother, The Earth, and I", with it's swirling Robin Trower-inspired lead work, and the astounding closer, "All The Wicked Things", complete with a dreamy, atmospheric opening that eventually morphs into a 'wicked' chugging riff at the mid-way point, really drive this album to some serious heights. "It's Not Over"...not much 'rock' here, but there's plenty of emotion, and the title track might perhaps be too Creed for some, but neither song is bad by any means. Perhaps "Now That I've Made It" veers too far into the melancholy side of things, and you could say the same thing about "Just Too Much", but with the wealth of memorable hooks and sing-along choruses here, it's hard to fault anything, to be honest.
Mark's vocals are spot-on and strong throughout, and when you think about it, should Myles Kennedy decide to ever move on from Alter Bridge fully into a solo career or another band (which I hope he doesn't, as I really dig the guy), Mark could easily step in and become the de facto lead singer for the band. He has proven he has the vocal chops time and time again with Tremonti, so I think it would be an easy transition if that were to ever happen. Guitar-wise, plenty of explosive riffs and solos to be found here, but, you have to wonder if some fans might find a chunk of this album to be a little on the 'light' side compared to previous releases, but, I think there is still enough to really sink your teeth into here to warrant between a 3.5 and a 4 out of 5 stars.
Track Listing
1. "The Mother, The Earth and I" 5:08
2. "One More Time" 4:28
3. "Just Too Much" 3:48
4. "Nails" 3:55
5. "It's Not Over" 4:54
6. "The End Will Show Us How" 5:47
7. "Tomorrow We Will Fail" 4:48
8. "I'll Take My Chances" 4:00
9. "The Bottom" 4:10
10. "Live in Fear" 4:10
11. "Now That I've Made It" 5:36
12. "All the Wicked Things" 6:04
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