The Perfume of Decay
The Perfume of Decay puts a darker tone around Tigercub's heavy rock. Fuzzy guitars and thick bass lines carry most of the weight, while Jamie Hall's voice often stays softer than the music around it. That contrast gives the album its character. The band can make a song sound heavy without keeping the singing at full force all the way through.
After the brief atmosphere of Dirge, the title track brings the guitars into focus. Show Me My Maker is more convincing as a full song, using a tense opening and a strong vocal melody to give the heaviness a clear direction. The Dark Below works in a similar way, with the bass and guitars pulling against each other before the chorus brings them together. These are direct rock songs with enough detail to keep their familiar ingredients interesting.
Swoon is less settled. Its changing moods and noisy percussion push the arrangement into a more restless shape, giving the album a useful burst of unpredictability. Until I Forget also finds room for a harder vocal delivery. The band do not abandon their main sound, but these moments show how far it can stretch when they let a little more disorder in.
The quieter tracks create a different kind of space. We're a Long Time Gone uses acoustic guitar and keys to pull away from the heavier material. Help Me I'm Dreaming closes with a gentler melody and an uneasy atmosphere, rather than trying to finish with the largest riff. Both fit the album's late-night mood, although the acoustic pause is less memorable than its change in texture first suggests.
There are other limits too. Some of the murkier songs blur into the same mood, and the writing does not always give Hall's themes of doubt and anxiety enough detail. Play My Favourite Song is accessible, but it has less personality than the strongest tracks around it.
The Perfume of Decay remains a solid album with several clear highlights. Tigercub are effective at joining a good hook to a heavy rhythm, and the quieter singing gives their loudest parts more character. A little more variety would help, but the best songs already make a strong case for this trio.
