Metal Monday #3

You may have noticed that we haven't been updating this as regularly as we'd like to. These things happen. It isn't necessarily laziness per say, but rather a combination of unexpected events and dilemmas occurring that were both unforeseeable and unexpected. Though readers would be justifiable in expressing their discontent at leaving such a long gap between posts, it is out of our hands. Sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do. We figured throwing up a Metal Monday post on a Wednesday or Thursday would not only be disrespectful to anyone who actually follows this blog but it would also kind of defeat the purpose of the post. Regardless, we hope we can make amends today and hopefully there won't be a repeat occurrence in the future.

Onto the tracks. First up, we have the first song from the revolutionary album Alaska by Between The Buried And Me Though I had been a fan for a few months before I saw them live, it was only when I saw them supporting The Dillinger Escape Plan that all of the pieces of the puzzle fitted together. Here was a band that could very much send shivers down the average metal bands' collective spines, yet at the drop of the hat they could switch up their style to fit just about anything from Progressive Metal to Power or Death Metal. This fusion of genres was what really made this band stand out to me. Diversity is a rare thing in metal these days so it was an absolute pleasure to hear a band who were not only instrumentally extremely tight but who were branching out and doing their own thing irregardless of what the metal community thought. The song, All Bodies, in particular, was chosen due to it demonstrating their versatility on a grand scale. For example, on this track, one minute the song will be building up to a crescendo of riffage when suddenly it'll breakdown and the focus will be placed on keyboards which sound like something out of a Vanden Plas album. On a similar level, vocally, Tommy Rogers puts ex-Scar Symmetry frontman Christian Älvestam to shame by not only going lower than him but also hitting the higher octaves seamlessly, which is itself a huge testament to his ability because Älvestam is one of the pioneers of this technique. Musically, the band themselves have described their album Colors as "new wave polka grunge" and "adult contemporary progressive death metal" which should give you some indication as to how unique they are.

Between The Buried And Me - All Bodies

This next choice is mostly for nostalgia more than anything else. It is, of course, Fear Factory's Linchpin, a song which I first familiarised myself with in my teenage years at The Venue (R.I.P.) Interestingly enough, I get the impression that this song (and a bunch of others) will forever be intertwined with fond memories of moshpits and headbanging in this particular club, which is both saddening and satsifying. Fear Factory as a band never really reached this high point again in their career and appear to have slipped into obscurity in recent years due to creative rifts between the members. The song Linchpin itself is characteristic of the type of metal music that was being produced in the early 2000s, culminating heavy riff and drum patterns with borderline-growling vocals that eventually and inevitably manifest into a more tame vocal chorus. I'm guessing this is how the majority of metal bands crossed over into the mainstream consciousness. As I Lay Dying, Killswitch Engage and more recently Slipknot have all been guilty of this, not that I blame them, but it does take away from the music at times. In spite of this, Linchpin remains a track that still gets put on rotation every now and again and not solely for nostalgic reasons either.

Fear Factory - Linchpin

In direct contrast to the aforementioned compliant vocal melodies of the 2000s is Lamb Of God's Now You've Got Something To Die For, a track which is quite possibly my favourite by them. Believe me when I say that it pulls no punches in any respect. The brutality of what is on offer here would almost make you want to burn down a church out of sheer barbarity (but not quite.) I honestly can't remember how or when I was introduced to this track as it was quite some time ago but I imagine it was through my purchase of their eminent album Ashes Of The Wake which I acquired on a whim when looking for some heavier bands to listen to. Though many consider the standout song on that album to be Laid To Rest, which is in itself an incredible track, Now You've Got Something To Die For just takes it up to another level. In my opinion it not only spoils the album but spoils the majority of their discography due to it being so damn good. Like practically all of Lamb Of God's material, it doesn't compromise for even a second. Just to give you a sneak glance of exactly how uncompromising this track is, I will supply you with a sample of some lyrics:

Bombs to set the people free, blood to feed the dollar tree
Flags for coffins on the screen, oil for the machine
Army of liberation, gunpoint indoctrination
The fires of sedition
Fulfill the prophecy

Enough said.

Lamb Of God - Now You've Got Something To Die For

For the fourth track I've decided to go with something a bit different, a band that appears to have been forgotten about in the past couple of years, Pagan's Mind. Unfortunately I don't get enough time to listen them enough these days but hopefully that will change in the future. Like many bands who have played the illustrious ProgPower festival (and its various different incarnations) throughout the years, I was first introduced to this band by their placement on the ProgPower bill. Though it wouldn't be wrong to describe them as a Power-Progressive hybrid, there is so much more to their music than just being a band who fuses together two different genres. There are many different experimental elements to their music and you can tell they are deeply influenced by Symphonic Metal by their compositions and reliance on grandiose keyboard parts and guitar and bass accompaniment. Though I've been listening to this band for quite a few years now, I first fell in love with A New Beginning in my second year of university after an impromptu listen one morning, much to the deterrence of my housemates. This song not only conjures the spirit of the band perfectly, but it also has one of the best opening riffs of all time. So good, in fact, that that same morning I found myself air guitaring standing atop my bed which I can assure you is an extremely rare occurrence these days.

Pagan's Mind - A New Beginning

Lastly, continuing with the 'different' take I have decided to go with my favourite band, Dream Theater. Anyone who knows me knows that I have been a diehard Dream Theater fan since first hearing Awake around 2002. When that album entered my life I knew that not only had I changed in terms of listening but also that I was developing my tastes extremely rapidly. Contrary to what most people think, Dream Theater was not my first foray into the Progressive Metal genre. In fact, it was Symphony X with their track Eyes Of Medusa that introduced me to the genre. It was Dream Theater, however, who sealed the deal. Though I still think that their earlier stuff is a masterclass in musicmanship, I have been becoming less and less attached to them in recent years. The first album that for me was a bit of a letdown was Train Of Thought, their take on the balls-to-the-wall thrash metal genre. Although the follow-up Octavarium was an interesting return to form in a lot of respects, anything past that has just lost my interest. Recently I have been delving into my CD collection and picking out dozens of albums to listen to over the space of a few weeks. From these lists, Images And Words, Awake, Scenes From A Memory and Train Of Thought have made it onto the shortlist. I honestly don't know why I picked Train Of Thought, its an album I rarely, if ever, listen to. I guess I felt compelled to give it another chance and although it still makes me feel a little underwhelmed, the song, This Dying Soul, really shows what they're capable of. Though it is most definitely on the heavier side, this is not necessarily a bad thing. Just listen to The Glass Prison and then you'll see what I'm talking about. Not only are the instrumental parts of This Dying Soul technically sufficient, but every band member seems to really shine on this track, whether it is through the guitar and keyboards harmonising, the drums not only keeping but dictating the flow and the bass providing a solid foundation. What is also surprising about this track is that James LaBrie provides shockingly good vocals. It is no secret that his vocal cords were damaged in a food poisoning incident in 1994 and they have never truly recovered, but on this track his vocals fit perfectly to the music, proving just how adaptable he can be.

Dream Theater - This Dying Soul