Manipulator (album)

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Manipulator
Manipulator cover
Studio album by The Fall of Troy
Released May 1, 2007
Recorded December 2006 – January 2007 at Robert Lang Studios, Red Room Studio and Avast Classic in Seattle, Washington
Genre Progressive rock
Experimental rock
Length 47:22
Label Equal Vision Records
Producer Matt Bayles
Professional reviews
The Fall of Troy chronology
Doppelgänger
(2005)		 Manipulator
(2007)

Manipulator is the third full-length album from Mukilteo, Washington's The Fall of Troy. It was released on May 1, 2007 through Equal Vision Records, and is the follow-up to their previous 2005 effort, Doppelgänger. The title of the album is taken from the song "Sledgehammer".

Contents

[edit] Information

The album was written in 2006 during what was to vocalist/guitarist Thomas Erak "a really dark time" in his life.[1] Erak states: "We wanted to expand upon our band in every direction musically and attitude-wise", resulting in a much more eclectic album; one that "always keeps listeners guessing."[2] The band also wanted to pursue some of their more pop and pop-rock influences. Drummer Andrew Forsman described the record as

"...a mix of staying true to our punk rock roots whilst pushing new musical ground. We definitely wanted a more poppy sound; we love good pop and we wanted to explore what we could do with that kind of sound. Other than that we wanted to make the songs flow a little better; instead of riff after riff after riff we wanted something that would be more cohesive regardless of the specific style."[3]

Erak adds "Weezer, Saves The Day and The Get Up Kids were all great bands. I am not afraid to venture into that world as long as the creativity and the art is still preserved as part of it."[3] Some noticeable changes from their previous works include the increased amount of non-screamed vocals on the album, and the inclusion of "Caught Up", a song consisting of just Erak singing and playing guitar, with no accompaniment from bassist Tim Ward or Forsman.

While the album was being recorded, Erak stated that Nouela Johnston of the Seattle band Mon Frere was playing keyboards and adding backing vocals to several of the songs on the album.[4] However upon release of the album, a misprint in the booklet listed Erak as having played keyboards. Erak later apologized on the band's forums for this misprint and asked fans to spread the word online that Johnston played all keyboard parts on the album.[5]

The band has stated that "Semi-Fiction" is a renamed version of the previously unheard song "Ghostship VII", part of a suite of songs scheduled to appear on the upcoming "Phantom on the Horizon" album, although its inclusion on that album in its present form is uncertain.[citation needed]

The track name "A Man a Plan a Canal Panama" is a palindrome, as it is spelled the same forward as backwards. It is a reference to former US president Theodore Roosevelt and his role in the construction of the Panama Canal.

The album art was designed and illustrated by Ward.

[edit] Track listing

  1. "Cut Down All the Trees and Name the Streets After Them" – 2:37
  2. "The Dark Trail" – 4:30
  3. "Quarter Past" – 4:51
  4. "Problem!?" – 1:56
  5. "Semi-Fiction" – 4:26
  6. "Oh! The Casino!?" – 2:17
  7. "Sledgehammer" – 6:01
  8. "Seattlantis" – 4:01
  9. "Ex-Creations" – 3:09
  10. "Shhh!!! If You're Quiet, I'll Show You a Dinosaur" – 2:44
  11. "Caught Up" – 2:30
  12. "A Man a Plan a Canal Panama" – 8:20

[edit] Bonus disc: Live at The Boardwalk (Orangevale, CA)

  1. "I Just Got This Symphony Goin'" – 5:32
  2. "Ex-Creations" – 3:22
  3. "Cut Down All the Trees and Name the Streets After Them" – 2:56
  4. "Shhh!!! If You're Quiet, I'll Show You a Dinosaur" – 3:00

(This is the actual running order of the CD, the tracklist printed on the disc itself is incorrect due to an error and has the first and third song switched.)

[edit] Personnel

[edit] Additional personnel

[edit] Charts

Album - Billboard (North America)

Date Chart Position
May 19th, 2007 The Billboard 200 76[6]

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Fall of Troy band info
  2. ^ Allmusic.com album review
  3. ^ a b Kelham, Andrew. "The Fall of Troy Take Control" Rock Sound pg. 46-47 issue 97 June 2007
  4. ^ Tom mentioning Nouela during recording
  5. ^ Erak posts an apology on the official TFOT forums apologizing for a printing error
  6. ^ Billboard.com album info page

[edit] External links

v • d • e
The Fall of Troy
Thomas Erak  · Frank Black  · Andrew Forsman
Tim Ward
Studio albums
The Fall of Troy (2003) · Doppelgänger (2005) · Manipulator (2007)
Other releases
Ghostship (EP, 2004) · Equal Vision Demos (demos, 2005)
Videography
"Tom Waits (Demo Version)" (2005) · "Whacko Jacko Steals The Elephant Man's Bones" (2005) · "F.C.P.R.E.M.I.X." (2006) · "Cut Down All The Trees And Name The Streets After Them" (2007) · "Ex-Creations" (2008)
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