Nomasonha Magazine review, February 2005

Thylacine: Self-titled

10-song CD Self-released

Thylacine (pronounced thi-le sin) is a duo from the Boston area that is one part Garbage, one part Lords of Acid, and, strangely, some electronic and pop influence. All the electronic ear candy and layers of clean and dirty guitar made me think this had been produced by Butch Vig (Garbage, Nirvana).

Despite the fact that I'm a metalhead at heart, I found myself attracted to the music. Soft, dark, and haunting at times, the team of Rob Mercier (guitar) and Susan Cruickshank (vocals) use textures and ambience to set the stage for head pounding explosions that further pull the listener into their musical abyss.

Susan and Rob play all the music themselves and, for live performances, use backing tracks for drums, keys and bass. There are more and more bands taking this approach nowadays and I hope these two pull it off. The idea behind this group intrigues me.

My only complaint is that even though the CD came in a cool all metal container (props to "Thylacine" for original packaging) there is hardly any band info. I had to go to their website to find out who and what they are.

I recommend this group to anyone who is looking for something a little different, a little off center, and certainly not conventional. www.thylacinemusic.com.

Performance: 4 Songwriting: 3.5 Production: 3.5 Recommend this: YES

- Otto Kinzel