Devon Grave's lyrics always capture something poetic in nature. "If it's true that crows are carrying the souls of dead people into the beyond," states Devon, "then what happens with the souls of those people with whom the crows didn't manage to get there?" An interesting question and his inspiration for DEAD SOUL TRIBE's latest album's title "A Murder Of Crows". Graves is the singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose music is both philosophical and challenging. "Everything I write has a message, an approach to poetry," he says. "It's the major function of poetry not to provide answers, but to raise questions - to be thought provoking and to create space for individual interpretations."

This is exactly what DEAD SOUL TRIBE succeeds in doing with their second album, "A Murder Of Crows". Just as thoughts flow through the endless convolutions of the brain of their creator, the songs of the album build up an atmospheric tension, holding the listener with it's compositional fluidity that lets them swim in a sea of intriguing melodies.

Modern progressive metal must sound that way, but at the same time offer a fresh and sometimes amazing approach. Just imagine TOOL with a vague point of orientation, connected with the compositional strength of PSYCHOTIC WALTZ, (Graves' previous band which he's still known under the pen name Buddy Lackey).

With his name change, Graves also made a musical and personal change when he formed DEAD SOUL TRIBE. The debut album of the same name (2001) was a convincing statement of his grand creativity and more than just a glimpse of his actual feelings at the time. "I still like this record very much," say Graves. "I think, it has its own character style which is unique." However, the new "A Murder Of Crows" shows an obvious evolution of the DST sound. "The new songs are far more aggressive. At the same time they are sounding more progressive without losing the groove. The guitars are more dominant and the keyboards were held back more. You can find a few acoustic guitars and more flute parts than on the first record."

One can also hear that Graves has made experiences as a sound engineer too. "0A Murder Of Crows" makes a great impression with a powerful sound, exposing the dynamics of all the instruments and creating a lasting result. "Since the first album, I have learned a lot as a producer," Graves admits. "The entire album has a better sound, especially the drums."