TSS is a French trio formed in 2016, formerly known as The Sunday Sadness. The band offers a mix of pop, heavy metal and synthwave sounds. After releasing a few singles (‘The Wrong Way’ in 2017, ‘Lost In The Crowd’ in 2018), followed by an album in 2019, the band evolved by offering lyrics in French. In 2021, the band shortened its name to the acronym TSS and this year they are releasing a new album, End Of Time, a colourful patchwork that we invite you to discover.

‘End Of Time’ builds cold, mechanical, almost cyberpunk atmospheres, mixing genres with powerful cement and mastery and almost pop-like catchy choruses. Between metalcore, industrial metal, gothic rock, synthwave and pop, it moves from one style to another with ease, guided by emotion, biting riffs and contagious energy. The first highlight of the album is the excellent vocals with their multiple registers. The second is the French lyrics, which are all too rare in metal. Finally, the third is carried by the icy atmospheres that evoke a disembodied, cold, sanitised and fundamentally pessimistic future.

The album is very melodic. In a classic way, ‘In The Haze We Hide’ displays a catchy melody and a structure reminiscent of Linkin Park (‘Breaking the Habit’). The synthesiser sounds are cold but catchy, and the heavy guitars inject a dose of summer warmth. Less conventional, “Dead” offers the ultimate fusion of electro, heavy guitars and vocals that oscillate between French and English. “So Long My Friend” is a superb melancholic track with a desperate beauty. You can feel the raw emotion, as well as a diffuse violence born of suffering. The atmospheres are unsettling: ‘Would You Be My Therapy’ exudes an oppressive vibe against a backdrop of sharp riffs and electronic embellishments, then prolongs this mood on ‘Something In The Way’, a common thread linking the tracks together.

‘End Of Time’ is an album that is as desperate as it is sublime. Although it brings together a multitude of styles, it follows a coherent musical vision where emotion reigns supreme. This is a moving album, on which TSS offer beautiful melodic compositions, somewhere between Depeche Mode, Linkin Park and powerful metalcore. ‘End Of Time’ is a success, a beautiful opening to a new musical world.