J-Man Trillion Red is a two-piece act hailing from San Francisco, and Two Tongues is their debut EP. This band sets out to create some highly original music - and in that regard, they succeed with shining colors. Trillion Red's unique blend of different genres is sure to garner some much-deserved recognition in the metal community, but Two Tongues is also lacking in a few other important departments. This isn't the most memorable or compositionally impressive effort out there, yet Trillion Red gets enough aspects right to make this a very promising debut effort. If Trillion Red can work out a few of the kinks of this release, their next album could really be something special.

Describing Two Tongues is significantly more difficult than one may imagine. Every tag I've heard given to this EP doesn't fully represent it, and I'm sure my description won't explain the uniqueness of this release much better. The music here is dark progressive/avant-garde gothic metal with influences from sludge and doom metal - that's quite a mouthful, and I still don't feel it fully describes everything Two Tongues has to offer! This EP must be experienced to truly understand the sound that Trillion Red is trying to convey. Despite how much I appreciate the band's original and inventive attitude, I think that Two Tongues is lacking a bit when it comes to memorable compositions. The EP seems too unfocused most of the time, and lacks enough memorable hooks to justify all of the eclecticism of the release. If the band can work on crafting more memorable songs, their next effort could be significantly more impressive. The production is also pretty bland and unprofessional, but that's not a major issue for me.

So despite all of the flaws on Two Tongues, it's still a highly original release and that cannot go unnoticed. This certainly isn't a good purchase for those seeking the "safe" side of music, but should definitely appeal to those who enjoy more adventurous listening. Two Tongues isn't a flawless masterpiece, but it's a solid effort from Trillion Red deserving of 3 stars. On Trillion Red's next album (it's currently slated for a 2012 release date) I would like to see a few more memorable compositions, however.