When the musical elements coalesce into a pulsing diamond, you will find yourself wishing for a volume setting of 11. The thrashy "Kulter Kreig" reminds me of Praxis (with Reid being far more interesting than Buckethead).
The secret weapon in all of this just might be co-producer Jack Dangers (he of Meat Beat Manifesto fame). Not only does Dangers bring his wide-open ears to the project, he also plays a bunch of instruments including bass and guitar.
One main (and poisoning) ingredient common to most supergroups is the ego. I'm sensing none of that here. No one player gets in the way of any other. So what's allowed to take shape are the musical thoughts, unencumbered by the wasteful arrogance of "I".
The results are pretty danged spectacular.
Just don't call 'em a "supergroup".
Article comments
1 - Tom Johnson
This is very high on my must-buy list this week. I just hope someone has a copy locally, or I'll be ordering this right away. There's also a single out with a couple of mixes and one track not on the album, I believe.
2 - Dawn
Jack Dangers is as amazing a producer as he is an artist. That fact alone is enough to make me interested.
He's also a super nice guy.
Was the "Brothers Gonna Work It Out" from the same sample the Chemical Brother's used - I can't imagine there are two songs with the same name?
Just may have to pick this up - thanks for another review from your most eclectic (and excellent) collection!
3 - Mark Saleski
that's a good question dawn.
i've got no info on it...i'll have to go dig out my Chemical Bros. cds (hope they're not in that danged 'lost' pile)
4 - Tom Johnson
Just picked it up and must concur - this is incredible stuff. And even though you said Slayer left you cold, you owe it to yourself to check out something by them. Lombardo's drumming is one of the things that keeps me interested in the two discs I have (South of Heaven and Seasons in the Abyss (the latter is one of my favorite albums of all time, as a matter of fact.)) He's also equally incredible in Mike Patton's Fantomas.
5 - Mark Saleski
yep, i've gotta get some Slayer.
i've never heard Patton's Fantomas....but the store around the corner from where i'm stayin' has a big selection of that kind of stuff. the only Patton i have is that Astralopro....crap, i can never remember what it's called. but it's full of totally bizarre mouth noises.
6 - Dawn
Any music advocated by Tom and Mark I am all for, excluding Slayer.
Honestly, I just can't seem to grasp atonal metal music.
It's not that I don't like to rock out or thrash, but metal music is so devoid of anything remotely funky and soulful that I find it as appealing as people scraping their eating utensils on their plates.
Music needs some sort of basic rhythm -something that speaks to my intrinsic cave-dwelling instincts, my tribal lust, my inner earning to dance naked around a roaring fire - and honestly metal music (most I have heard) is like an alien entity that was created to cripple my spirit.
It offends me and makes me want to kill things - how can that be good?
7 - HW Saxton
"Brothers Gonna Work It Out" is a great
funk tune by Willie Hutch. It's featured
in the soundtrack to the classic 1970's
Blax-ploitation film "The Mack".It was a
staple of early Hip/Hop acts & DJ's.It's
been sampled several times.
The soundtrack was released on Motown in
1973 & has some other really great funk
tracks like "Vampin'" and "Slick" on it
as well. The previous mentioned tracks
have also been sampled numerous times as
well.
This IS the same tune The Chemical Bros.
used and it was sampled not long ago by
smooth neo-soul/R & B crooner "Lloyd".
8 - Tom Johnson
Mark, I think you would really enjoy Fantomas' latest, Suspended Animation. As I read from someone who gave it a shot on a spur of the moment decision based on the ravings of fans, "I'm not sure whether to laugh or be scared," which got the response "That's kind of the point!" It's like Naked City if NC were based in metal rather than jazz.
And Dawn: I think it depends on which side of music you wound up gravitating toward when you were younger. I found myself drawn to the drama and darkness of metal. I don't hear it as violent, really. It's fast, it's aggressive, but I still hear heart in it. And, to me, it's more tribal and ritualistic than most other music. It just doesn't tend to develop a groove like you like, opting instead to travel a path more pummelling and driving. I think maybe the appeal of metal might center around whether you are into more danceable music styles or not. I've not seen a large amount of dance-friendly people into metal, nor likewise. I, if you haven't picked up on this fact yet, am not particularly dance-music friendly. And, of course, it's probably proportionate toward either end of the dance-to-metal music scale. The more dancey-type stuff you like, the less metal you'll probably like. It's just a theory.
9 - Eric Olsen
I generally agree with Dawn that there is almost no such thing as "too hard," BUT I need some kind of groove to hold on to or it all just sounds like noise.
10 - Mark Saleski
sometimes, i just like the noise...i like to let it wash all over me.
very hard to explain.
that said, i often get in the mood for some metal and don't make it all the way through a recording.
also, i guess i grew up in the classic rock era and cut my guitar teeth learning all of that stuff. i tell ya, i remember playing Zeppelin's "The Ocean" one time...it was so fricken lound that it seemed like we were all gonna levitate.
11 - Dawn
Well, it's not like I am some kind of puss, I dig lots of hard stuff. I am one of the few people I know who can listen to NIN's Broken and find it really cathartic. And I dig almost all Industrial genre type stuff, my only issue is that it must have as Eric says a "groove" or it just doesn't vibe with me.
Plus I don't consider Led Zepplin the same kind of Metal as say Cannibal Corpse, or Slayer. I just don't feel anything for atonal thrash, but hey that's me and there's room for all kinds of crappy music - better thrash than Celine.
12 - FPFL
Dave Lombardo is simply one of the tastiest rock/metal guys to record in the last 20 years. He's so much more than a skinny eggbeater like most of the modern and fast drummers. His fills are more memorable than most vocal melodies.
To dismiss Slayer as atonal or lacking groove may be true when discussing their hysterical guitar solo habits, but their is no band on earth that brings the sounds of war to music as a churning, furious and ultimately hypnotic monster like Slayer.
There is a damn good reason Slayer beats still show up all over hip hop remixes after all.
13 - Scott Butki
Thanks for the review and heads up on this. I like Jack Dangers a lot and am curious to see what he and these guys did with Brothers Gonna Work It Out so I can compare it to the excellent Chemical Brothers version.
Slayer are not my cup of tea but I do think they are talented and do good stuff.