Atheist - Jupiter

[The_Metal_Messiah]

Any Atheist fans on here? I figured there should be since Atheist was one of the first (if not the first) bands to incorporate prog in death metal. Anyways, I just got the new album, Jupiter and it definitely is something any Atheist fan should love. Music-wise, it fits in between Piece of Time and Unquestionable Presence. Not quite as "atmospheric" as Elements, but still amazing nonetheless. My only real complaint is the production. Way too modern and overly compressed. The bass is way too low in the mix and not as prominent as the early albums. Plus Chris Baker told me that the guitars were re-amped, which kinda takes some of the life out of guitar tracks imo.

For an album that boasts only two original members (Shaeffer and Flynn), it sure sounds like a classic Atheist album. Baker and JT did a great job! JT actually played guitar AND bass on the album, because Choy left the band right before it was recorded.

Has anyone else heard this yet? If so, what do you think of it?

 

[TychoCelchu]

What does re-amped mean? Does it mean the guitar tracks were recorded, then looped out through another amp (or amp modeler) and the resulting signal recorded and becoming the track you hear on the CD?

 

[The_Metal_Messiah]

What does re-amped mean? Does it mean the guitar tracks were recorded, then looped out through another amp (or amp modeler) and the resulting signal recorded and becoming the track you hear on the CD?

Exactly. But I play differently on different amps, depending on how they respond to my fingers. So if I were to record a track while hearing myself play through one amp, but the signal was re-amped through a different amp, it just doesn't sound quite like I wanted it to. If that makes any sense...

 

[ratanda]

Choy left the band right before it was recorded.

Damn....

 

[The_Metal_Messiah]

Damn....

Yup... Sucks don't it? JT is an incredible bassist though. He plays bass for Gnostic and guitar for Atheist. But right now Atheist doesn't have a bassist....

 

[Metalmilitia2000]

I've heard bad things. I'm hesitant to check it out. I'd prefer to remember the Atheist I love.

I LOVE Atheist, and I listened to it and it did NOTHING for me. I was disappointed, which is a shame because I was really looking forward to it. It's not a BAD album, it just doesn't grab me like the first two did.

 

[TribunalRecords]

a buddy leaked this to me several weeks ago and it's in constant rotation. it's amazing. as for re-amping it doesn't sound any different than any other CD out there now which i am pretty sure most current engineers all re-amp. seems like everyone records direct signal because you can always mess with amps/tones later. but not being a guitarist myself i can see nuances like you mentioned being an issue with you, but however it doesn't mean the Atheist guys do the same as you. just a thought.

the album overall seems pretty pissed off and i love it.

 

[The_Metal_Messiah]

a buddy leaked this to me several weeks ago and it's in constant rotation. it's amazing. as for re-amping it doesn't sound any different than any other CD out there now which i am pretty sure most current engineers all re-amp. seems like everyone records direct signal because you can always mess with amps/tones later. but not being a guitarist myself i can see nuances like you mentioned being an issue with you, but however it doesn't mean the Atheist guys do the same as you. just a thought.

the album overall seems pretty pissed off and i love it.

Yeah, its not that much of a bad thing. I'm just saying its the only thing I have to complain about haha Thats how much I like the actual album. All I can complain about is the production, which just doesn't quite suit my tastes.

I'm actually pretty good buddies with a few of the members, so I heard the album just a couple weeks after it was finished. I didn't have my own copy until now though, and I love it! Sure, its no Unquestionable Presence, but its kinda hard to beat the best tech/death album ever recorded...lol

I'm assuming you've heard Gnostic right? If so, what do you think of them, with it being pretty much half of Atheist?

 

[Pellaz]

I'll definitely have to get this soonly.

What label are they on?

 

[The_Metal_Messiah]

I'll definitely have to get this soonly.

What label are they on?

Season of Mist, I believe...

 

[Pellaz]

Season of Mist, I believe...

Good. That means it won't be outright impossible to find online, just not likely to be found at Best Buy or Hot Topic.

 

[TribunalRecords]

I'm assuming you've heard Gnostic right? If so, what do you think of them, with it being pretty much half of Atheist?

never heard it. sorry. was it the good half? hahaha.

 

[Palabra de Dios]

I do not like Gnostic. I was underwhelmed by that disc, and actually kind of annoyed at times (mostly by the singer).

 

[The_Metal_Messiah]

Really? I think Kevin Freeman is an amazing vocalist. And even better frontman. He actually puts balls and personality into his screaming, which I love!

 

[johnfrank1970]

Yep, this album is my #1 for the year, edging out Son of Aurelius, Arsis, and, of course, Taking Dawn and Disturbed.

Within their discography, Jupiter is probably my least favorite, but just by a smidge. It is still a killer slab of complex death that fits very well within their stellar discography. The riffage, drumming, and vocals are all vintage Atheist, which means this is some of the best musicianship out there for my taste. The only drawback is the absence of Tony Choy on bass. The bass playing on Jupiter is decent, but it does not shock and awe me like Choy did when I saw him play with Atheist at Chicago Powerfest.

Jupiter is easily one of the best comeback efforts ever for me and will sit nicely in my top tier of complex metal releases. This disc came with the highest of expectations, and the band met them.

 

[Fire breath]

wow...there we go again Mr. Frank.....completely off in different tangents. I found the album to be very messy with extremely annoying vocals. Granted there are some amazing riff passages but this is not enough on it's own from lifting the album anywhere near my fave death metal albums of the year. You rank this above Son of Aurelius now? Seriously? Man gotta disagree with you there. SoA melts this album into oblivion in my opinion. It still never ceases to amaze me how people who broadly like the same style of music as we tend to do, perceive albums differently whilst agreeing on many and disagreeing on equally as many albums. You know what I was thinking that you will be slightly disappointed by this disk. I don't think I will ever figure you out Franky boy, you random crazy ass.