The Devin Townsend Project - Ghost [2011]

Judging by the beginning of "Fly", this will be an album more in the style of Ki. Fuck, it's so damn calm it's impossible not to feel relaxed. Good use of Native American flute... not too forward, but certainly audible. "Heart Baby" seems to reinforce what the album is leaning towards in style and mood. "Feather" is a large song that relies more on the atmospheric natural world to get by. "Kawaii" picks things up a little by switching focus to more of what the album started off as. Then, "Ghost" somehow changes style entirely to something reminiscent of southern folk, and "Blackberry" continues the direction with the addition of more traditional American folk instruments and writing. "Monsoon" and "Dark Matters" opt for a very ethereal, natural, and atmospheric feel. "Texada" brings the music more forward. This album differs from Ki in that the style feels much more like it was influenced by New Age. It's a very pleasant album that seems to sooth the soul. It's very impressive that Devin has managed to so accurately mix New Age into his own style.

Rating: 8.5

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The Devin Townsend Project - Deconstruction [2011]

Wahey! I was NOT expecting an electronic almost break-beat style to the beginning of the album. Damn, nice way to ease the music into epic and crushingly heavy metal. "Stand" drags a lot during the middle, but tries to make up for it with a validating end. "Juular" is quite an epic and energetic song... it is much needed after the very long and drawn-out "Stand". "Planet of the Apes" is all over the place. Thrashy, dragging, energetic, validating... it's got the lot. "Sumeria" flexes some of the catchier and more brutal muscles that Devin has. It's a strange album, this. It's so all over the place that it never really settles on anything that I prefer. So, there are times when I feel it's just boring. It's also not the catchiest or most gripping album. Even so, there is a lot to like about this album. The creativity is nearly burning the album alive. There are some really great riffs thrown in here as well as a lot of madness. Most of what I don't like about this album I can chalk up to me simply not being in the mood for a concept album. I can still see what an epic album this is despite my mood. As the album progresses, I feel myself diving deeper into it... it could be that my mood is being altered, or maybe it's that the songs have gotten better.

Rating: 8.5

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The Devin Townsend Project - Addicted [2009]

First thing I notice is that the vocals a bit more buried than I thought they'd be. "Addicted!" is attacking the heavier side of Devin that reminds me a lot of the stuff he did with SYL. "Universe in a Ball!" is more punchy and a little more catchy. Large up-tick in catchiness with "Bend it Like Bender!". "Supercrush!" keeps the catchiness and adds beauty into the chorus. Wow, "Hyperdrive!" is more of the same from the previous two tracks. The album started heavy, but not catchy and not in sync with itself. However, after that uninspiring start, things really pick up and great songwriting comes through. The focus of the vocals on this album is on female lead vocals. "Resolve!" really passes by without even being noticed, but "Ih-Ah!" yanks the attention back to the music with it's beauty. Boring start to "Numbered!", but it does mostly redeem itself by the middle of the song. There are extremely effective and pretty unique uses of effects littered around the album. I just can't believe what a turnaround this album had after the beginning couple tracks. It went from a creative but boring style to an excellent emotional adventure through beautiful soundscapes.

Rating: 8.25

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The Devin Townsend Project - Ki [2009]

Extremely easy-going start to the album. It's quite soothing and gentle. I love the way "Coast" slowly eases into a bit of chaos without actually committing to it... it's quite suspenseful. "Disruptr" demonstrates perfect and very well-through-out placement of effects with a gritty guitar jabbing through. The accents really come through as well. This one also eases into metal, but ends up somewhat committing to it... the vocals do at least, the guitar distortion doesn't really change, making it a very unique sound. "Gato" really catches the ear and wonderfully massages it... with warm butter. "Heaven Send" has quite a nutty solo to it. This is such a soothing album that I don't even mind that it's pretty long. It does have some creative elements to it like the slow crescendo of chaos that occurs occasionally. The chaos has double-duty, though, in the form of also being the sole variation found in the album. I wish there was a bit more variation. At the same time, the songs are very carefully crafted and the soothing nature of the music is so relaxing and effective.

Rating: 8.5

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Devin Townsend - Ziltoid the Omniscient [2007]

Entertaining intro track with plenty of camp. Hilarious concept, but "By Your Command" demonstrates amazing use of musical dynamics even though it's not all that catchy for most of the first half of the song. "Ziltoidia Attaxx!!!" kicks up the catchiness with a great groove. "Solar Winds" and "Hyperdrive" take things into the realm of a more calm and thoughtful space. It may not be the catchiest album in the world, and the songs don't really stick with the listener after hearing them, but damn is it a fun album to listen to. It's quirky as hell, funny, and dynamic.

Rating: 7.75

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The Devin Townsend Band - Synchestra [2006]

"Let it Roll" starts things off with acoustic beauty slightly giving way to some progressive elements later in the song. While "Hypergeek" starts off the same way, it kicks in with wall of sound madness and metal. "Triumph" shows off a bit of the switching the listen can expect on this album. It's almost as if the whole song is constantly in a state of transition... Metal, Progressive, Folk, Pop... it just never stops. POLKA! lol. Damn, it really blends into "Vampira" perfectly, though. Fuck, that's quite amazing. There are a few heavy sections littered throughout the album, but the focus of this album is obviously not heaviness. This is a progressive metal album with a good amount of the creativity that I like to see from Devin. However, it's not particularly catchy and doesn't really stick with you after listening. So, the immersion is hampered a bit.

Rating: 7.75

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Devin Townsend - Devlab [2004]

It's much better than I thought it would be. A solid, ever-changing atmosphere permeates the tracks. It's not over-blown noise like most bands and the placement of effects is much more deliberate. The vocal parts are kooky, creepy, and crazy depending on Devin's mood at the time. It's surprising that he managed to make an atmospheric album that bends to his every whim and still doesn't feel boring and self-indulgent.

Rating: 8.25

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The Devin Townsend Band - Accelerated Evolution [2003]

Up-beat and catchy start to the album with "Depth Charge". Not as brutal as Physicist, and not as contemplative as Terria. "Storm" has a very kind feel to it despite the harsh guitar distortion. The production on this album isn't quite as solid and heavy as the last couple of albums. There's a bit too much of the stock-rock influence for my taste, especially since the writing isn't all that catchy or gripping.

Rating: 7.25

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Devin Townsend - Terria [2001]

A much more introspective introduction to the album with "Olives" flowing right in to the more brash and punchy "Mountain". It drags a bit, but it's not bothersome because the riffs change nicely between sections and there's more than enough variation within the song to hold my consciousness in it's gravity field. For the most part, Devin keeps the tempo on the moderately slow side until "The Fluke". Devin seems to be combining the heaviness of the previous album with a more post-metal attitude and the more progressive vocals from Biomech. It's a bit of a journey, this one. A noticeably more inside-out approach than anything Devin has done before. The catchiness isn't really there, but it's much more creative and passionate.

Rating: 8

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Devin Townsend - Physicist [2000]

Thrashy metal start. Damn, it's so much like SYL. "Namaste" is quite catchy and powerful once the vocals kick in. "Material" is pretty damn catchy. "Kingdom" is pretty flat with a lot of repetition and no real point to the song. And then, "Death" kicks in like a fucking jack-hammer to the face. Highly, distorted vocals, palm-muting thrash, and blasting to boot. Interesting, this is much more like an SYL-dominant style with sprinklings of the more progressive vocals and guitaring of DT's previous solo albums. I'm missing the catchiness and creativity of Infinity, but the brutality has been ramped up quite a bit. The wall-of-sound production really makes this feel like an SYL album, but it can become too much when listening to the album all the way through since there are virtually no dynamics at all. Things to begin to get a bit dull towards the last three songs of the album, however. It's certainly not written as well on the whole as Infinity.

Rating: 7.5

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Devin Townsend - Infinity [1998]

Really starts off like a SYL album with powerful bassy explosions. "Christeen" follows on from OMB with a bit more metal injected into the style. But then, "Bad Devil" jams some jazz and swing into the same sandwich as metal. It's INSANELY catchy, this. "War" continues on with a good swing beat, but it's a bit long. Clearly, this is the album where Devin started going even MORE insane... "Ants" is really written with the title in mind. Crazy, spastic, and nutty as fuck. The first couple of songs really lie to the listener. Once the third track begins, one understands that this will not just be a more metal version of the previous album, rather there will be much more creativity and madness. Things change up a bit with "Unity" which really slows things down to create a feel less like a sledge-hammer and more like a velvet rope. It's quite good, not as catchy as OMB, but far more interesting and creative.

Rating: 8

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Devin Townsend - Ocean Machine: Biomech [1997]

"Seventh Wave" started things off very nicely with surprisingly heavy production and riffage. It's a nice combination of progressive vocals and heavy guitaring without creating a rift between the guitars and the vocals. But then, "Life" just shocks the hell out of me. It's insanely catchy... to the point that it feels like it should be illegal. Not very creative, but damn it sticks in my mind. Catchiness is certainly the name of the game here, but it's not done in such a way as to feel contrived or ripped off with no emotion. It just makes me feel good while I'm listening. However, it is a bit long and there isn't much in the way of variation.

Rating: 7.75

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Venetian Snares - Greg Hates Car Culture [1999]

Straight off, I'm very impressed by the percussive samples used in this album. It has a very natural feel despite the glitch aspect. I can even hear some more world percussion in there as well. "Personal Discourse" is much less noise than the previous album. There's more of an overtone of darkness and evil in the song. "Fuck a Stranger in the Ass" returns to the previous album's style of repetitive bass hits and spastic beats. Unfortunately, this return to the previously-mentioned style carries through the rest of the album. I was really happy with the style of the first two tracks, though. I just can't stand the repetitive bass hits... they're on the same fucking note every time and it drives me nuts.

Rating: 6

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Mitochondrion - Parasignosis [2011]

OH YES. Now this is so much more fucking like it!!. "Plague Evockation (Pestilentiam Intus Vocamus, Voluntatem Absolvimus Part I)" took a while to really kick in, but when it hit, it hit HARD. "Lex Ego Exitium (Pestilentiam Intus Vocamus, Voluntatem Absolvimus Part II)" shows off a bit more of the doom influence at first. It's certainly in a similar vein as Ulcerate, but with a lot more evil behind it. "Tetravirulence" does drag on a bit, though... getting into the area of doom that I DON'T like. In the end, there's a bit too much doom for my tastes, but it's still much more exciting and with better songwriting than Archaeaeon.

Rating: 7.75

http://www.myspace.com/mitochondrion

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Mitochondrion - Archaeaeon [2008]

"Into the Pit of Babel" is certainly what some would call "organic". Underground production, but it's not too bad. Interesting songwriting. There's a bit of sophistication to these songs. I can't really call it unique, but they've gone for longer songs with changing moods throughout. From pure Death Metal reminiscent of Gigan to clean guitar sections and even a hint of progressive. I think that this album would have been more exciting if the production didn't have such a soft touch and the edges hadn't been rounded off. Other than that, the music is pretty damn good. Sections like the ending of "Wraithlike" really feel like a wonderful massage, and others feel as satisfying as putting a baby in a blender feet-first. It doesn't feel all that creative, though, despite the clear focus on making the music deep... and even with that, it doesn't feel as deep as it was intended to be. Maybe it's just me reacting to the current trend towards "deeper" and more "introspective" songs in metal, or maybe they really didn't pull it off as well as bands like Gigan and Ulcerate. At any rate, I can't wait to hear this stuff with better production quality.

Rating: 7.25

http://www.myspace.com/mitochondrion

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Venetian Snares - Fuck Canada // Fuck America [1999]

It's like what pure ADHD music would sound like. It's fairly interestingly put together and every single section sounds meaningful. However, it's a very repetitive album with the same trick being repeated endlessly... and it does certainly get old. I'm also not a fan of the border-line Noise element.

Rating: 6

http://www.venetiansnares.com/

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Cryptopsy - The Unspoken King [2008]

First track is fucking cool. Definitely a punch in the face. Seems like Flo actually managed to get faster, fuck. Missing the creativity that was found on "Once Was Not", but we'll see how the rest of the album is. Second track and I'm actually beginning to miss Lord Worm. It's punchy, but still missing the creativity that I'm used to. Close to the end of the cd and I can say that I'm really not impressed at all. It's cool that they deviated from what they have previously done, but the change was not an improvement at all. I fucking hate the vocalist, especially his horrid clean vox. Virtually no creativity on this album. There are a few parts towards the beginning that are insanely technical on guitar, but that doesn't carry all the way through. This is a sub-par album for Cryptopsy.

Rating: 4

http://www.myspace.com/cryptopsy

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Cryptopsy - Once Was Not [2005]

Beautiful opening track. Brutal and heavy. Blazingly fast track 3. All in all, there's some extremely creative guitar riffs for Grindcore. A lot of jazz influence in the drumming. The technicality is fucking staggering. Every once-in-a-while there are even keys in the later tracks. Very good album with a lot of creativity. Definitely doesn't sound like anything else out there. The production is pretty damn good, too. Lord Worm isn't my favorite vocalist, that's for sure, but he's way better than the fag that replaced him.

Rating: 8

http://www.myspace.com/cryptopsy

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