Blackfield - Welcome To My DNA
I was super siked when I heard that Blackfield was going to be releasing a new studio record this year. I have mad respect for both creative minds in this project. One Steven Wilson who if you look at my blog at all you'll see his name stuck through out it like crazy, and Aviv Geffen who is an Israeli rock musician who's collaborated with Steven on this project with an astounding amount of talent and creativeness. This release on the other hand I really was let down. There are moments where the lyrics are just horrible, and the guitar melodies seem really really over produced. Even though they've always seemed to have an over the top production value. This record just really doesn't seem to have a lot of flair, and punch to keep me interested like the first two did. I'll stick to listening to those albums which are still great records.
Blue October - Any Man In America
I hate that this release is on here. I really do. I absolutely love Blue October. They have a close place in my heart, and mean a lot to my wife and I. We saw them together live at Stubbs, and the song 18th Floor Balcony was the song that we danced to at out wedding. I introduced her to them and she really likes them a lot. I knew all the hardships that Justin was going through with all the marriage, and nervous break down issues. I'd never wish that kind of pain on anyone. I think everyone could sense there were some major problems building just by listening to their previous release Approaching Normal. I know how I would be mentally if I was going to lose my son. So I totally respect this record in that it's true hate, passion, love, anger, depression, and really Justin just poring his heart out on this record. I just really don't like the major pop influences, and the cursing. I know when you're angry it's hard not let the nasty words flow, but I just respect them so much more than this record was giving back. Now I'd have to say this record isn't horrible at all. It's just way below what I want to hear from Blue October. SO hopefully he can push past this major bump in his road and get back to giving us the great breed of rock they do so well.
Chimaira - The Age of Hell
I've been listening to Chimaira for a long time. Ever since their Impossibility of Reason release in 2003. I really like their blend of electronic elements and heavy metal, without making any of it sound forced, or generic. This release however had a lot missing. I knew there were some major line up changes going on in the band, and the product they came up with really did nothing for me. There was really nothing that wowed me on this one at all, and there were moments that I really lost interest. I hope that the next release will be better because I still like this group and still listen to their earlier stuff.
Evanescence - Evanescence
When I heard that Evanescence was FINALLY coming out with a new studio release I wasn't really excited at all. Really nothing happened for me. I used to listen to The Fallen all the time when I was in high school, but now I've just lost interest. I know Amy Lee is a phenomenal singer, and she really is, but I'm just really over this band completely. Some of the tracks are just really annoying, and make me want to turn it off. The music sounds really forced, and nothing wows me at all. I don't think this band really has anything going for it anymore like they did when they first started.
Lazarus A.D.
It's a shame I enjoyed their debut so much more than this release. A lot of the guitar parts sound generic, and simple. The distortion isn't something that I haven't heard before from other artists. It's sounds like a mix between newer Soulfly, and something like Chimaira, or any other sub par metal core band out there. There are a few tracks that are half way decent, but not enough to keep me interested the whole way through.
Limp Bizkit - Gold Cobra
You know I wasn't surprised when I first decided to listen to the new LB record. I was quickly turned off by what everyone else is turned off by. Fred Durst and his horribly annoying voice. This is Limp Bizkit trying to do what they did in the past with releases like Significant Other, and Chocolate Starfish..., and they are failing miserably. The guitar tones are decent, and some of the riffs are pretty catchy at moments, but every ounce of decent music on this thing is just drug through the mud by Fred Durst's horrible rapping, and wanna be singing voice. He is not a good singer by any means, nore is he a good lyricist as well. Limp Bizkit is done for me, and now I know why every fan of this band is either 12 years old and don't really know what good music is, or a dushy shallow frat boy that drives around with his nice car and flashes his rims off, while later graduating collage and going to work at Burger King waisting Momy and Dadies money. But who cares all he needs is his car and Limp Bizkit to succeed right. Right
Morbid Angel - Illud Divinium Insanus
Never have I ever head a worse use of drum effects, and electronics on any type of record much less a metal record for that matter. The vocals are horrible, and the drumming is just really really bad. The use of drum effects on here are the worst I've ever heard, and it really makes me cringe when I listen to it. The guitar really isn't anything to get excited about either. There's only so much guitar flair you can have with all of the other mediocrities on this before you make it seem like you're trying to give the listener a little piece of something to keep you listening. Nothing does though at all for me, and pretty much everyone else that's listened to this atrocity to Morbid Angel's legacy in Death Metal. It's such a shame to see this happen to their career. They will have to work so hard to recover from this on the next one it not even funny.
Wayne Static - Pighammer
Wayne stated in an interview I watched on youtube that his motives behind this record were to get back to what his original intents were for Static-X, and really focus on mixing disco styles with metal. I'll have to say I'm glad Static-X turned out the way it did, because if it would've turned out like this I would not have been a fan at all. This stuff really doesn't do it for me at all. If there are fans of this record out there you know more power to you. All I know is I'm definitely not one of them at all.
Winds of Plague - Against the World
There are some decent guitar riffs, and melodies on this one, but really the lyrics are what is killing this one for me. There are some majorly juvenile and weak vocal moments on this one. At least there are some decent guitar parts that I know will make some fans of this band happy, but for me I really wasn't impressed at all. Still it's way better than Morbid Angel's crap. I'd honestly listen to this any day over that record, and this record isn't good at all.
311 - Universal Pulse
I'm really not a fan of this band anymore. I mean who didn't have a copy of their self titled release in 95. I really liked that record, and Evolver in 2003 had some decent tracks on it as well. I've just really haven't found anything I've liked in any of their material after Evolver and it's a shame. The only thing I could say that I like about this record it the album art. Really that's it the music is just not good at all.
So there you have it. My list of major fails for this year so far. The year is almost over and I'm sure I've weeded out the goods and bads for me this year. There were some great releases this year, and some that met the cut, and some that will get forgotten for sure. There are some releases on this list that I will probably be revisiting in the future, and some that I won't even want to look at again, and it's a shame I spent my money on them. So if you liked some of these that's fine I just think these guys are at the bottom of the barrel for me, and that's where most of them will stay. So until next time stay hard, stay heavy.
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