Album Review: Brothers of the Sonic Cloth by Brothers of the Sonic Cloth

(or: How I Learned to Stop Dieting and Love That Bass) Thanks to the hard work, dedication and sheer determination of Saint Meghan Trainor, we now live in an über-tolerant post-fattist society where every size and shape is accepted, between-meal snacking is actively encouraged, the gastric band is banned and that “truffle shuffle” scene from The Goonies is (rightly) viewed as a horrifying example of childhood bullying It is a shame that Saint Trainor was not around to preach her pro-booty gospel 30 years ago. Had that been the case, Tad Doyle from the rock band TAD would have been (rightly) accepted as equally gorgeous as his Seattle contemporaries such as blue-eyed Kurt, naked-chisel-chested Chris Cornell and Handsome Eddie and the Pearl Jams. Instead, every single TAD reviewer ever felt obliged to describe the size of the frontman’s body, as if that was somehow integral to the act of critiquing the music.

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It’s been a while since Tad Doyle made his musical presence felt. There was a brief and partial reunion of TAD in 2013, but the last time Tad himself actually released anything significant was Hog Molly’s Kung Fu Cocktail Grip 15 years ago. Not that he’s been entirely silent of course; there have been rumblings. Brothers Of The Sonic Cloth have been bubbling away for a number of years, but have only a split 10” to show for it.

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Fronted by the larger-than-life Thomas ‘Tad’ Doyle, Seattle quartet Tad were responsible for one of grunge’s defining platters, 1989’s God’s Balls, but while they later cut the poppier 8-Way Santa with Nevermind producer Butch Vig, they failed to follow Sub Pop neighbours Nirvana into the mainstream. Tad were later courted by two major labels, Giant and East West, but their career gradually petered out after 1995’s poorly received Infrared Riding Hood, and they split in 1999. Doyle then helmed the short-lived Hog Molly, releasing just 2001’s Kung-Fu Cocktail Grip before enlisting bassist (and wife) Peggy Doyle and drummer Dave French for his latest project, Brothers Of The Sonic Cloth, in 2008.

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