Roscoe Tripp - We all

Roscoe Tripp

We All
self-released; 2024

​​By ​Dino DiMuro
​

ROSCOE TRIPP is not a man (though I suppose he might be) but is actually a thrash-rock band from the Washington DC area. Formed in 2021 by producer and lead vocalist Greg Fine, the band’s recordings and live shows harken back to the early 00’s music scene.

The band members are Tony Vitez (lead guitar), Masterjee Bumbu (rhythm guitar), Cass Foley (bass) and Ash Tressel (drums). The band’s new EP is titled We All. Fine clarifies that this release was originally meant to be just the single “We All” but they had enough B-sides to create a 4-song EP. Recording took place at Sunday Coffee Studios (Washington DC), Cue Recording Studio (Falls Church, VA) and Blue Room Studios (Bethesda, MD). All tracks except “Just” were mixed and mastered by Gabe Wolf. "We All" jumps out of the speakers (or directly into your brain via headphones) like an out-of-control Supertrain. Fine calls it “an energetic punk-adjacent alt rock song that we have been opening or closing sets with over the last year.” Fine’s lyrical inspiration was a song by Modest Mouse. In the context of losing his father, Fine considered the idea that time is cyclical, and perhaps he’d see his father once more “if time looped back again.” All the guys play in triple time, with fuzz power chords overlaid with speedy melodic riffs.

Fine has a classic rock voice that can’t help but affect you with lyrics like “Neither a start nor an end / Right where we were / I can’t wait to see you again.” For the choruses the guys cut the tempo in half and take a dramatic pause with a swelling, orchestral rock background. There’s a short, wild guitar solo with traces of Cow Punk, followed by an almost a cappella section in the style of The Lumineers. “When the Stalks Are Low (The People’s Version)” starts with one of the ballsiest bass sounds I’ve ever heard, like it was recorded 200 feet below the earth! Fine says this is the third version of a fan favorite, with the first being longer with an F- bomb and the second a shorter, “clean” radio edit. “This is the version fans always wanted.” The song I’m hearing is jumpy, kind of funky and features dramatic chorus vocals as in track one.

Having been alive in early 2000 I’m definitely getting flashbacks! I like how this band’s hard rock sound is always tempered by ghostly keyboards or distant, echo’d guitars. “Cut Self Not” is a cover of a song by math rock band Faraquet, and was originally released on a vinyl compilation album “Yesterday & Today: DC Does Dischord.” This track features amazing guitar parts and killer stop-start arrangements, confirming my suspicion that this band could do a prog album without thinking twice. I hate to say that a cover tune is my favorite but this really kicks major butt.

​Just as good is the final track, an interpretation of Radiohead’s “Just.” It packs all the power of the original but feels slightly higher pitched and a bit more acoustic in spots. Fine mentions that “Tony Vitez’s guitar work on tracks 3 and 4 is insane, and we wanted to highlight that by including them together.” There’s no arguing his logic, as the final solo here goes to the stratosphere and explodes into a literal supernova. Go play it right now if you don’t believe me! As a short collection for a novice (me) these were very interesting track choices, showing a wide range of styles and sounds from an awesome band. I loved it and you will too!

Tweet