The End Begins

Infobox Album
Name = The End Begins
Type = studio
Artist = Tantric


Released = April 22, 2008
Recorded =
Genre = Post-grunge
Hard rock
Length = 44:30
Label = Silent Majority Group
Producer = Toby Wright
Reviews = * "Type 3 Media" rating-10|6.5 [http://www.type3media.com/albumreviews/tantric_theendbegins.html link]
* "TuneLab Music" rating-10|8.5 [http://www.tunelabmusic.com/2008/04/20/review-tantric-the-end-begins/ link]
Last album = "After We Go"
(2004)
This album = "The End Begins" (2008)
Next album =

"The End Begins" is the third studio album from Louisville, KY-based band Tantric. It is the first one recorded without the band's original members Todd Whitener, Matt Taul, and Jesse Vest. Vocalist Hugo Ferreira, the only remaining original member, was forced to scrap the original line-up's complete third album in favor of "The End Begins", an effort established by new members of the band in addition to Ferreira.

"Tantric III"

Armed with Elliott Blakey in the producer's chair, work commenced on the follow-up to "After We Go" in February 2005. The band finished over a dozen songs for the album, which at the time had the Led Zeppelin-esque title, "Tantric III." Samples were released in May 2007 of the songs "Fall Down"(which included a guest verse from Nappy Roots member B. Stille), "The One," and "Letting Go." However, many internal problems plagued the band over the course of this time, including the departure of bassist Jesse Vest (Whitener recorded all of the bass on the album), sales of "After We Go" hurt by downloading , and the band's release from Maverick Records, the latter of which has shelved this album indefintely. Finally, the original line-up collapsed in May, 2007 with Whitener and Taul announcing their departure through TantricOnline.com, the band's former online message board. Unfortunately, the aforementioned instances have limited the amount of information available on the album, save for the tracks listed below, as well as intentions of a May 2006 release.

Produced tracks for "Tantric III"

* "Letting Go"
* "Fall Down" w/ Nappy Roots
* "The One"
* "July" - Todd Whitener, vocals
* "People"
* "Stay With You"
* "Worth Waiting For"
* "Trying Hard"
* "Locked Out"

Personnel for "Tantric III"

*Hugo Ferreira- vocals
*Todd Whitener - Guitar, Bass, vocals
*Matt Taul - drums

"The End Begins"

Left without a band, Hugo Ferreira scrapped the entire record and enlisted members of his side project, State of the Art, to record and tour as Tantric. These include ex-Fuel drummer Kevin Miller, ex-DramaGods bassist Joe Pessia on guitar, Fosterchild bassist Erik Leonhardt, and Marcus Ratzenboeck on electric violin, adding another dimension to the band. The new line-up finished recording in September 2007, with returning producer Toby Wright. The album was released on April 22, 2008, and debuted at #91 on the Billboard 200. As of July 11, 2008, it has sold over 10,000 copies, with the lead single, "Down & Out" at #8 on the "Billboard" Mainstream Rock Chart.

Oddly, the only version of the physical "End Begins" album is a partially censored edition; the tracks "The One" and "Monopoly" are muted of explicit lyrics and listed as "Clean" when played on a PC. "Love Song," however, frequently uses the word "shit" uncensored during its chorus. [Upton, Dan [http://www.antimusic.com/reviews/08/Tantric.shtml Tantric - The End Begins Review] AntiMusic.com (2008). Retrieved on September 16, 2008.] [ [http://chastiser-music.blogspot.com/ Tantric - The End Begins (2008)] Chastiser-Music.blogspot.com (April 24, 2008). Retrieved on September 16, 2008.] It appears that the only way of obtaining the two aforementioned songs uncensored is by purchasing them as mp3s via iTunes or Amazon.com. [ [http://www.amazon.com/End-Begins-Tantric/dp/B0014DC05U Tantric - The End Begins] Amazon.com (2008). Retrieved on September 16, 2008.] or obtaining them through the band's manager.

It is speculated that, based on current interviews with Hugo Ferreira, "Tantric III" may be released between "The End Begins" and the new line-up's next album, pending approval from Whitener and Taul. The repackaging of this record, in addition to older B-sides from "Tantric" and "After We Go" would to some degree be a "lost tracks" compilation. It is currently slated for a November 2008 release.

Tracklisting

# "Regret" - 4:13
# "Down and Out" - 3:39
# "The One" - 4:08 - feat. Kevin Martin (lead singer of Candlebox)
# "Love Song" - 4:03
# "Wishing" - 4:50
# "Something Better" - 4:01
# "Lucky One" - 3:28
# "The End Begins" - 4:11
# "Monopoly" - 3:51
# "Why Don't You" - 3:42
# "Lay" - 4:19

Personnel

* Hugo Ferreira - vocals
* Kevin Miller - drums
* Joe Pessia - guitar
* Erik Leonhardt - bass
* Marcus Ratzenboeck - electric violin
* Kevin Martin - vocals on "The One"

References