Tulip - "The Perpetual Dream"

Starting to bloom after transplanting

This is one of the most interesting acts I’ve found in a while (which is why this review is on the longer side). The Perpetual Dream is Tulip’s sophomore effort, and their story feels like a modern retelling of Romeo & Juliet - but with a happy, and metal, ending. Here’s a link to a larger article for those interested.

For those who would rather just have the sum-up: Tulip’s core is the duo of vocalist Ashleigh Semkiv (vocals) and Colin Parrish (guitar). The pair were members of a very fundamentalist church in Canada, where they met, started playing together, and fell in love. Despite that both were already married, and the church’s pressure on them maintaining their existing marriages, they ultimately both divorced, were excommunicated, and moved to Texas, where their band has picked up a couple of new members and fully turned to metal.

That background is important to really beginning to understand where the band’s music is coming from. There are a lot of overtones and thematic elements dealing with mysticism, spirituality, betrayal, heavy decisions, forbidden love, and trauma; and there are elements of Christian symbolism embedded into the lyrics with incredible ease, such that I cannot begin to spot them all.

The band’s sound is centered firmly in Symphonic Metal, utilizing a wide variety of instruments and sounds to emphasize soaring melodies delivered in Semkiv’s powerhouse vocals. Some songs briefly utilize Beauty and the Beast stylings, though I’m not sure who delivers the harsh vox. There are elements which seem to be borrowed from Gothic Metal - accidentals in both melody and harmony, and heavy, groovy bass lines which would fit perfectly into a Lacuna Coil song. There are also a lot of electronic elements and distortions - I don’t believe any track goes without some mesh with electronica.

And, it’s interesting to note - there is currently no recognized metal subgenre which infuses electronic elements into Symphonic, Gothic, Power, or Progressive (though, honestly, Prog definitively remains Prog no matter what genre blending happens within).

Another important takeaway from the above article is Semkiw’s transition into metal. Semkiw was classically trained well before Parrish introduced her to metal - in fact, her vocal skill set skewed toward operatic vocals, so classic Nightwish was important for her to understand the depth of the genre. Her vocals here are standard, clean vocals - not operatic. And this was a learning process for her, and I think she’s adapted well.

The album has 12 tracks total, nine of which are actual songs. Each of the nine songs has a custom tarot card art piece associated. These were drawn by Canadian artist Kyle J. Smith (@kjscomics on Instagram, and a member of The RAID Studio, an artist collective in Toronto), and are absolutely gorgeous. And some might provide additional context for the lyrics.

This image was taken from Tulip’s Instagram. Feel free to visit if you want a better look.

The card for “Near Death”, for example, features a fetus (or baby) with wings. It’s not enough to nail down the full story behind the song, but it lends extra weight to the line “Ophelia, wraith like, be born again”. Paired with a line that repeats throughout the song (“Alive in someone else’s body”), there are still a couple of different interpretations to argue, both literal and metaphorical.

“Near Death” also has an incredible tone change at the bridge. I’m honestly not certain if there’s a key change there, but the tone brightens, becomes hopeful. It’s well-executed.

Another oddity on the album is that, if I had a nickel for every repurposed childhood rhyme in the refrain, I’d have two nickels. It’s not a lot, but weird that it happened twice. In back-to-back songs. In a sense, it’s also strange that it happened only twice, meaning it’s not a thematic element, just a coincidental set of decisions.

The first instance occurs on “The Hanged Man”:

Here is the church and here is the Steeple
Open the doors and see all your people
The rot, the teeth, that can't draw blood
Swinging limp
With two bags of gold

Given the religious trauma that Semkiw and Parrish endured, this one makes a lot of sense. This song is also one of Semkiv’s best performances on the album. She absolutely blows those doors down here. The instrumentation is also at a peak here. It’s one of the best tracks.

The second occurs on “Assassins”:

One, two, who are you?
Three, four, speak no more
Five, six, venom lips
Seven, eight, assassinate

It’s the most metal version of “One, Two, Buckle My Shoe” I’ve ever heard, and it doesn’t sound bad. It’s just…odd.

The album closes with the title track, “The Perpetual Dream”. Despite its slow start, it quickly becomes one of the best tracks on the album. Once it gets going, it’s aggressive and technical and, above all, hopeful. It’s their story, and the story of every young couple who dive headfirst into the unknown in pursuit of love and happiness.

There’s a lot to love on this album. It’s definitely worth further consideration.

Rating: Teal Blue