Koloss (For Real)

Okay, reviewing Meshuggah's new album, Koloss, now.

Though most people have never heard of Meshuggah (named after the Yiddish word for "crazy"), they've been one of the more influential bands in metal since the release of their last album, obZen. A new subgenre of metal called "djent" is largely based off their technicality and distinctively distorted guitar sound--a whole generation of metal bands trying to sound like Meshuggah. How does Meshuggah respond? By calmly reasserting their dominance of the experimental/extreme metal scene and releasing what might be their most solid album yet.

Koloss sees Meshuggah explore beyond the oft-imitated style of metal they pioneered without ever leaving it fully behind. (Except on the last track) The opening track, "I Am Colossus", is definitely on the slower end of their repertoire; a slower, lumbering, and discordant beast of a track that flirts with equal parts groove and doom metal with its impossibly low, detuned guitar chugs. It has a faster sort of revere breakdown in lieu of a solo to spice things up. Just when the first track was almost getting relaxing, "The Demon's Name is Surveillance" returns to "Bleed"-like intensity, levels, built on Tomas Haake's laser-precision rapid-fire kick pedal triplets played in 6-time. The man is a human clock or something.

"Do Not Look Down" is slower but has a similarly intense atmosphere, as well as one of the cooler polyrhythmis on the album. It's more riff-focused, built around a distinctive guitar loop that gets accentuated by some shredding during the solo as well as a few slower breakdowns. Again, these are many of the same elements lots of other technical metal bans use in their songs, but when Meshuggah does it, it feels right and perfectly planned. They are the masters. Anyway, "Behind the Sun" is slower and even more doom-y, though accented by some double/triple bass later where the solo might be in a normal song.

"The Hurt that Finds You First" is probably the most extreme song on the album, with distorted 3-time guitar chugging laid over blast beats and other staples of extreme metal drumming. Then, of course, the outro shifts to a style reminiscent of post metal. "Marrow" is another polyrhythm-heavy song, with a repeated riff that appears to slide up the fretboard midnote for a cool slide effect. The solo here is some higher, discordant shredding to counterpoint it. "Break Those Bones Whose Sinews Gave It Motion" reminds me of doom metal...or post metal...or just Meshuggah. It has one guitar engaging in some of the lowest and heaviest riffing since "I Am Colossus" while the other guitar (or maybe the keyboard) provides electronic-sounding overtones. In the solo/breakdown the guitars go largely ambient for an almost creepy effect.

"Swarm" is built on top of rapidly picked, low-register guitar triplets, with Haake tribal-sounding polyrhythms for a sound that seems to creep and crawl on all fours until it--nevermind. In the solo the guitars just go crazy--I swear, every single song features a totally different guitar sound from the ever-inventive Swedes. "Demiurge" is again slower, with a pounding guitar line that can't seem to decide between 3 and 4-time. It's one of the more chill tracks on the album, relatively speaking, except of course "The Last Vigil", which is a quiet, ambient instrumental postlude to help you relax and return to the world of sane music.

All in all, this album may not seem all that different from obZen, but when extreme metal experimentation is your baseline, it's hard for Meshuggah to sound too innovative without completely reinventing themselves on each album. (Which they sort of already do) It seems a bit more raw and less robotic than their earlier work, as if the band is getting back to basics. (Except that would entail their music having been "basic" at one point) Koloss sees Meshuggah pursue new sounds and prove that, as usual, "rhythm" and "tonality" are mere suggestions. At the same time, they seem to be kicking back ever so slightly and showing that technical metal isn't about who can move their fingers and feet the fastest. The elements of their music have been frequently copied of late, but only Meshuggah can put them together so perfectly into a simultaneously visceral and intellectual package of well-thought-out aggression.

The final word: I would give this album a 5/5 for being one of Meshuggah's most solid releases yet, if not their best. It's definitely not for everyone, but worth a listen for adventurous metal fans. Some good songs to sample are "The Demon's Name is Surveillance", "Do Not Look Down", "Break Those Bones Whose Sinews Gave It Motion", and "Swarm". Bonus points for the fractal-inspired artwork.

Smooth Criminal - Alien Ant Farm

I'm not sure which I like more: metal covers of non-metal songs, or non-metal covers of metal songs. Anyway, here is a song in the first category that has been stuck in my head lately.

Iconoclast

Okay, finally time to review the new Symphony X album.

Say what you will about Symphony X, but they definitely aim high. Their past albums have been epic compositions based on Greek mythology and Milton; their latest release, Iconoclast, is a semi-concept album about a Matrix-esque war between humans and machines. I'll be reviewing the two-disc special edition.

Right at the start, this album hits you with what is by far its standout track: the epic (in every sense of the word) title track, "Iconoclast". From an ambient/symphonic/electronic intro we suddenly launch into a swirling, crazy-sounding riff, then heavy metallic chugging over strings and a choir chanting in Latin. It is at this point that you get an idea of what to expect from Iconoclast. (The song and the album) Finally, at two minutes in, the choral intro gives way to the song's main riff, which is most satisfyingly technically advanced and catchy. Finally, at 2:40, Russell Allen's vocals begin. It has a nearly-four-minute instrumental section beginning at 5:00 including more epic choral vocals, one of the album's best solos, and in general enough awesome instrumental shredding and vamping to satisfy a Dream Theater fan. All told, this song is a showcase of everything I love about non-extreme metal and one of my favorite metal songs of all time. Its only real weakness is the chorus which, while anthemic, is still just "We are strong! We will stand and fight!" repeated over and over.

From there, "The End of Innocence" sounds almost like a mortal-sized version of "Iconoclast", or "Set the World on Fire (Lie of Lies)" from Paradise Lost,  combining heavy, chugging rhythm with electronica-sounding keyboards. "Dehumanized" is slower and darker in both atmosphere and lyrics, one of the less remarkable tracks on the album. "Bastards of the Machine" turns the intensity back up, again with great, precise, and enjoyable riffing and more techno-type keyboards providing accentuation. It manages to pack an excellent instrumental/solo break in despite being the shortest song on the album at just under 5 minutes.

"Heretic" is one of the more power metallic songs of the album, and has some of the best drumming, with plenty of aggressive blast beats and double-bass breaks. Also another great, shredful guitar solo. The second epic, "When All is Lost", begins as a piano ballad that counterpoints quiet and intense sections quite well before going completely crazy in the end. It's worth noting that this song was the end of the normal album, and finishes off the first disc on the digipak version.

On the second disc, "Electric Messiah" is a great faster song whose main riff is as fast as some solos, though the chorus is considerably slower. "Light Up The Night" is even faster, the most power metal song on the album. The dissonant riffing on "The Lords of Chaos" reaches groove metal, almost Meshuggah levels. Finally, the closing epic, "Reign in Madness" would be a fine musical summary of the album if the title track weren't better. It seamlessly merges an electronic atmosphere with the usual heaviness, and has a quiet piano midsection calling back to "When All Is Lost".

This album picks a style and relentlessly pursues it to no small success. Its focus on riffs and rhythm over melody gives it a distinctly modern, American sound; it stays consistently aggressive and intellectually dense, as a Symphony X album should. The man-versus-machine concept is cool to explore and well-represented in the music and lyrics. Russell Allen's vocals go from fairly melodic singing to more of a snarl; overall, it seems a bit darker and more punch-you-in-the-face heavy than Paradise Lost, but still very much in the same vein. And, of course, the title track is beyond amazing.

And that brings me to the album's weaknesses. If you couldn't tell from above, this album is very riff-focused, almost to the point where the only differences between some songs is their riffs. It's pretty homogeneous; some songs stand out, but besides "Iconoclast", only just. If you looked at a track listing you'd also notice I just skipped two of the songs entirely as they really don't give us anything we haven't already heard.

Conclusion: 4/5. If you liked Paradise Lost, you'll love this album, but it won't be anything new. Certainly give the title track a listen, at least, as well as "Heretic", "When All Is Lost", and "Light Up the Night".

Koloss

"The Demon's Name is Surveillance", from Meshuggah's new album, Koloss. Review forthcoming.

Give Us Rest

It's not every day that a band tells you their last album will be their last, before they release it. David Crowder Band's final album, the quintessentially-DCB-titled Give Us Rest or (a Requiem Mass in C [The Happiest of All Keys]) feels bittersweet. On one hand, I am saddened by the loss of one of the greatest voices for God and the gospel in the music world. On the other, their last gift to the world is a towering epic of near-perfection the likes of which has never been heard in the world of "Christian music" and may never be heard again.

The concept of their album is that DCB is essentially doing the music for their own funeral service. And do they ever go out with a joyful noise. The scale of this album is amazing, dwarfing even Church Music with fully twice as many tracks totaling over 100 minutes. The mood ranges from reverent awe to lowly humility to euphoric, soul-bursting joy to theatrical; the musical style draws on and builds upon DCB's entire career to date. I hope I'm not sounding hyperbolic; I've listened to the album all the way through four times and find more to love about it each time. This is simply one of the most fantastic compositions, let alone Christian contemporary albums, I have ever heard. The only real weak point I see in it is the preponderance of short "filler" tracks/interludes, some of which are pretty good ("Interlude" and the "Sequence" tracks), but which I wish had been reduced. Okay, now that that's out of the way, I get to tell you all about how amazing this album is.

For fans of the band's previous work, there is of course plenty to like here. I wouldn't be too surprised to hear my church's praise band playing the lead single, "Let Me Feel You Shine", a rousing anthem to God's glory and grace that exemplifies the passion that this album is bursting with. Plenty of other bands write powerful worship lyrics, but DCB truly embodies the mood of their lyrics in their music like no one else, especially on this album. Other great songs for CCM purists would be "Come Find Me", an upbeat song driven by trading piano and acoustic guitars; "Fall On Your Knees", which has (again) great lyrics and a spacy, expansive feel/beat; and the ecstatically celebratory "Oh, Great Love of God", which...well, just listen to it. "Sometimes" is a quieter, devotional song, a tender expression of love for dependence on God: "It's your love that we adore/It's like a sea without a shore/We're lost in you..."

But this album also gives DCB plenty of time to explore their more offbeat side. Partly this is seen on the short interludes interspersed throughout the album, which contain Latin praying, choirs and organs, and classical music. "Interlude" is an especially cool one with its swirling piano. "God Have Mercy (Kyrie Eleison)" has a more electronic beat to it, almost reminding me of Owl City; "Blessedness of Everlasting Light" sounds like a cross between a music box and a marching band. In the seven-part, sixteen-minute "Sequence" suite, DCB notably flirts with progressive rock. The first part starts off with some of the heaviest acoustic music I've ever heard, overlaid by Christmas bells and electric guitar shredding; it's frenetic, moody, and undeniably cool. Over the rest of the suite we get choral music, tender banjo music, and some epic classical music. Definitely one of the more interesting parts of the album.

For traditionalists, Give Us Rest also has plenty of acoustic music, particularly on the second disc. After "Reprise #2", we get "Oh My God" and "I Am A Seed", energetic and upbeat acoustic songs that sound like two halves of a whole. "Oh My God" with its rising chorus reminds me of the "songs of ascents" in the Psalms. "I Am A Seed" recalls the promise of the resurrection: "I've been pushed down into the ground/But I will rise up a tree". Both sound like super-happy bluegrass music, kind of like "I Saw the Light". "Why Me?" on the first disc is a much slower, more stripped-down acoustic song with David and a lone guitar. The last three songs all sound like traditional hymns (two of them are); DCB's own contribution, "Jesus, Lead Me To Your Healing Waters", reminds me of the soundtrack to O Brother, Where Art Thou?, and "Leaning On the Everlasting Arms / Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus" is also very well done.


But this is, after all, a requiem, and a few songs remind us of this fact. The largely acoustic "Oh My God I'm Coming Home" is played over a soundscape of a guy getting into a car and driving off. The first full-length song, "Oh Great God, Give Us Rest", is a heartfelt piano piece expressing their weariness with performing. In the line "I've done my part too well, I 'fess" we get a clue as to why. In Christian music there is a fine line between being forgotten and hogging God's rightful glory, and perhaps the only way for DCB to avoid doing either with this album was to make it their last. David Crowder Band has been a true credit to the Kingdom of God and "Christian music", setting the artistic bar that so many other well-meaning performers aspire to. They will be missed. But the love of God goes on forever--and ultimately, that's what DCB would want you to take away from their music. It's hard to believe the music in heaven will vastly surpass even that of Give Us Rest.

Innocence & Instinct

RED's latest album Until We Have Faces was my second-favorite of 2011, but lately I've been coming to enjoy their previous one Innocence and Instinct even more. It's largely devoid of the crazy experimentation of their next album; instead it's pretty much the high point of the melodic, pseudo-symphonic style of metal they developed on their first album.

Instrumentation-wise, this album boasts two guitarists, unlike Until We Have Faces which makes do with one. Despite this, the guitars on this album are generally a bit less prominent, and the distinctive string instrumentation shines. RED's brand of symphonic metal is notably more aggressive and, dare I say, angsty than the European variety.

This is definitely metal for the heart rather than for the head; compositionally pretty simple with a focus on the vocals, but highly enjoyable and cathartic. Like so much power metal, and unlike RED's upcoming change in direction, this album focuses more on doing a few things extremely well than on musical exploration. It's a mix of aggressive songs whose edge is tempered by the strings, and considerably lighter ballads. Between this and Until We Have Faces, I honestly can't say which is darker.

In the first category are songs like lead single "Fight Inside", which starts off with an electronica intro before a titanic guitar riff explodes into your ears, only to disappear again for the more symphonic verse. Or the next track, "Death of Me", which has a nice blend of heavy riffs and strings simultaneously that plays with the tension quite nicely. "Start Again" is somewhat more melodic/major-key sounding than "Fight Inside", but structured pretty similarly.

I hope I'm not making it sound like all these heavy songs are carbon copies of each other. "Confession" is a very quick and aggressive with an amazing symphonic ending worthy of a European symphonic metal band. (I'm letting my Eurocentric bias show) "Overtake You" has a nice, crashingly huge chorus with double-bass drumming, though the "You come to get me but you'll end up dead" bridge is a bit off. "Forever" and "Shadows" are both more melodic, pop-inspired songs with the focus squarely on the strings.

And that takes me to the other vein running through this album: the ballads, the source of most of its variety. Not counting the quiet intro track "Canto III", Innocence and Instinct's symphonic metal attack doesn't let up until track 6, "Never Be the Same", which lets you know it's going to be different from the opening acoustic guitar. The metal sound comes back somewhat during the chorus, but over all it's definitely more on the light side. I was surprised to learn that "Ordinary World" was a Duran Duran cover, as RED does a great job on making it their own. The strings really come in handy here for giving it a beautiful, pensive mood.

The last two quiet songs are definitely on the darker side. "Take It All Away" is mostly a ballad between a quiet guitar and piano, with mournful low-key vocals. After the symphonic bridge the drums come in and the energy starts to build to an amazing conclusion that makes you want to get out a lighter and sway back and forth. Finally, the last song "Nothing and Everything" is a quiet piano version of "Fight Inside", similar to RED's two versions of "Already Over" on End of Silence. Exact same words, completely different mood.

I can understand if the above description of the music has you less than thrilled. RED is definitely a Christian band. The music is good, but the focus is on the lyrics, which come off as far more confessional than preachy, focusing on internal conflict, questions of meaning, and searching for escape from despair. (Even for a Christian band) On the one hand the lyrics may come off as whiny, but on the other they are easy to connect with and thought-provoking. "Fight Inside" is about the internal struggle we all face, as described in Romans 7 and metaphorically depicted on the album cover. "Nothing and Everything" offers an interesting mirrored look at the lyrics, from the point of view of despairing hope instead of angst.

Besides that, there are plenty of lyrics about faith, doubt, and questions about God--"Mystery of You", "Start Again", and "Never Be the Same" form a nice trilogy about realizing there is more to God than you can ever comprehend,  repenting and asking to start over in relationship with Him, and looking back on how vital He is. The lyrics are often intensely personal, even angsty, but they're never lonely or despairing. There is a definitely undercurrent of hope that I don't see in many secular lyrics. Even the Duran Duran cover works bizarrely well, with its context in the middle of the album effectively reinterpreting it.

Overall, this album has the definite mark of a great one: I enjoy it more each time I listen to it. Musically Until We Have Faces is much more interesting, but this one has much more of a gut-level impact that you can connect with readily. Give it a try if you have the chance.

And by the way, this review has been on the queue for months, but fear not; I have several newer albums that are quite deserving of full reviews that I hope to write in the next few weeks.

Helloween

Good lord. Ordinarily I rate songs with five stars after they've had time to grow on me, but this one made my jaw drop repeatedly the first time.

Disclaimer: this is not Helloween's normal, power metal style at all; it's from an album of symphonic/acoustic rock covers of their hits.