Tree of No Return starts off simply enough, with an ominous guitar strum that lurches into a heavier version of Pelican, which then turns into a double-bass propelled prog-speed metal grindcore freak out. And off Tusk go, delving deeper and deeper into the weird, all the while chronically the journey on one hapless drifter. As musicians, Tusk are damn good. The drumming stands out in particular. On top of the drums, bass, guitar, and vocals (which range from a hoarse roar to a somewhat irritating nasally croon), there are a fair number of effects courtesy of guitarist Trevor de Brauw and singer Jody Minnoch. Taken into the context of �wilderness dementia,� the added noise works. The press sheet referred to Tusk as �avant-grind.� It�s a fitting description for something this flat-out fucked up.

Don't go looking for Pelican with a little more double bass drumming here. While there are a few brief bits of slow, crushing doom on display, most of the album is sharp, angular riffs with plenty of blastbeats. Definitely grind based. More like a less extreme Pig Destroyer than Pelican.

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