- Sep 12, 2001
- 8,312
- 4
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Upon putting The Politics of Ecstasy into my cd changer and proceeding to press play, on a whim i suddenly changed my mind and put my Special Edition Dead Heart in a Dead World cd into the player instead.
When i got to We Disintegrate, i thought "This is damn cool", and then i thought "Why is it that i don't appreciate this album then?", and i began to wonder about it. Simply put, i had expectations for this album, and too many expectations for Jeff as a guitarist and a writer. But what if i get past that? I mean, i really like Iced Earth's horror show these days, and that's neither brilliant in guitarplaying nor writing, and i remember feeling the same way about it when i first got it "Wow, this really blows -compared to their other stuff-", and that's where i beleive i go wrong. I put expectations on a band, and then when they come up with something a little left feild, or I enterperet their last album in a different way than they themselves did, that's where the dissapointment comes in.
Listening to Dead Heart in a Dead world as the follow up to Dreaming Neon Black and Politics of Ecstasy, it totally flops. There's no two ways about it. BUT! What if i were to just listen to the album as it is, forget that it's nevermore, forget what jeff is really capable of and what he's done in the past, forget POE and DNB, and just take it as it is...?
...The fact of the matter is, I'd like the album.
Sure, the production kills it, but it's a cool, rockin' album. Inside Four Walls has got a good, grating riff that sticks in your head, and songs like We Disintegrate have just got a cool vibe to them. Sure, it's not a dark album at all, and alot of the guitar is just chordal progressions, but that's okay, it's STILL a step ahead of most other bands out there.
With the death of Chuck Schuldiner and the onset and slow acceptance that "There will be no more Death albums", i realize now that i can't afford to be dissapointed by one of my favourite bands like Nevermore. Hell, i don't like Symbolic (
), i don't like the album at all, despite Perrenial Quest possibly being my favourite Death Song of all time. It suffers from fairly straightforward riffing (well, for Chuck that is...), and a terrible, boomy production like Dead Heart in a Dead world... But it's material from my favourite guitarist, and the guy who i ultimately want to be like as a person, and in all reality, it's some of the best stuff out there, despite my expectations for it.
So here's my take on Dead Heart in a Dead world, a review if you will, with no bias, and no spite and dissapointment, just like this was the first time i listened to nevermore, as if POE never existed *gasp*.
Dead Heart in a Dead World.
Aside from Dreaming Neon Black and the art he did for Redemption, i am not a fan of Travis Smith at all. It doesn't suit Nevermore at all. But then again, The Politics of Ecstasy has got possibly the worst cover in existance
So i take it as it is. I don't like the cover, but it's a nice, neat package, and the art on the reverse of the album is actually pretty neat. The blue themed album is really cool, and the cd being white itself is a nice touch. (In the case of the SE edition, the cover art is Brown, and the cd too, which doesn't work so well). The art behind the cd itself (The vulture, the statue and the hearts hanging from the trees) is absolutely awesome.
I always get a buzz putting a nevermore cd in, and for some reason, this time, i got the same buzz from DH that i do when i put POE in the player, that "Oh my god, i'm about to hear it again! Yeah!" feeling.
Narcosynthesis kicks in. I really don't like the first riff at all, but it gets better from there on. This song has got one of the coolest choruses ever, and possibly some of WD's best vocals too. The verse riff reminds me of Fear Factory, the one note pulse, and the hi-hat going continuously. The psudo-muting is a nice touch in this riff, some muted, others half muted, and at the end no muting. The semi-chorus riff is pretty cool (How did it come to this etc), The thing that strikes me is Warrel's vocals. My guess is that he likes Dani Filth, the whispering behind the semi-chorus is really really cool, i didn't even realize that there was whispering untill i listened to it this time.
Then comes the chorus, really really cool... half time drums... the guitars are just simple chordal phrases, which is cool, it lets WD have the stage... then it whacks back into the "fear factory riff", it hits you straight in the face, demands your attention for the next time the chorus comes in...
It's a simple, but cool song. The solo starts of basic, little melody, but then it kicks into a full time rhythm, and it actually reminds me of thelast section of the "This Sacrement" solo, where he is hammering on and off around the 12'th and 10'th fret, making a quasi-tapping feel to it.. pretty cool idea.
Then comes We Disintegrate... and seriously, sitting here in front of my computer, this song makes me want to raise my fist in the air and scream "FUCKING METAL!!!" for some reason. The little melody and strange syncopated drumming pattern at the start is cool, using a darker scale, it's a cool touch. Then warrel's vocals come in... ha ha... this dude rules. Sanctuary plays a part in this... while not as high as battle angels, it's pretty friggin hard to sing along with, especially with all that random vibrato kicking around the place... The little chorus after the verse is nice, it's a little doomy, with some nice high and low harmony ideas from WD.
The next song smacks me in the guy... seriously... it's almost a Death Metal riff that starts the song... and that segull squeal is damn cool... Morbid Angel eat your heart out...
Evolution 169, a slower, doomier song, pretty cool. Strange lyrics, but it's a nice touch... It's ironic in a way... just think ,thousands of people going to a ball game, or thousands in their homes watching the same show... are we just rats in a genetic experiment of some mad scientific overlord? The TV lies... It's a depressing song, very very good lyrics...
Then there's THE RIVERDRAGON. this is a cool song too... the main riff is a nu-metal riff, but it's still cool... The verse riff is another Fear Factory style riff... and Warrel's vocals are amazing... Then there comes a faster, really really cool riff, a headbanging riff, fuck yeah, this is a song they would play live... Another cool chorus... "The riverdragon has come, souls wash away" it's a nice topic this, i can't remember, but i read somewhere about floods in asia somewhere, and it was because they had created dams throughout the whole city that it was so bad, it was just a channel of death basically, wiping out everything in it's path... When the waters came everyone was screaming "The riverdragon has come!!" it's fairly eerie to think about, but it's an upbeat song, so it's cool. The solo is nice, it's worshipped around here just like the This Sacrament solo. It's a simple neoclassical phrase, pretty cool, not particularily difficult to play, but it's effective.
The Heart Collecter. Nice, neat song. Not a favourite of mine at all, but it's solid.
Engines of Hate... Fuckyeah... that's a cool motiv at the start... and the riff after is really cool, with the offbeat ending... cool. The higher pitched intro to the main riff is annoying as hell, but the riff it's is great... some nice hammering. The vocals are once again amazing, with a bit of a growl in them. The lyrics are great, using the "mind expansion" ideas of POE here and there "Feast on my mind's semen..." etc.
Sounds of Silence. That's one headache of a riff Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang the riff after is very cool tho... then the half time bit is aweosme... AWESOME, it's surprisingly difficult to play actually, another seagull sqeal, and we come to a nu-metal groove... that's okay tho, it fits. The vocals are cool, effects soaked whispering... when the normal vocals come in, i get a chill... Very cool idea, to make it into a darker song musically... i always appreciated the lyrics of the original, but the music was just too 60's pop for me.
Insignificant... cool song. Dead Heart style acoustic guitar.... more great lyrics and vocals...
Beleive in nothing, pure mush, i can't even listen to this song, especially after i saw a cut version of the song with a terrible videoclip attatched on tv the other day... the vocals are great, the lyrics are decent, it's got a nice chorus, but the guitars just bother me. Jeff was never one for chords... but like i said, i'm taking this album as it is, not how i percieve it should be...!
Now, this song fucking rules... Dead Heart in a Dead World... this absolutely kicks my ass... starts of with a "cenotaph" style bass riff, some crackles and fuzz for effect, an "After the war" vision comes to mind, an old man looking about on the nuclear waste that was once his city... The heavy riff is fucking cool... the production makes it a little muddy, and like Sounds of Silence, makes it a little bit of a headache to listen to at times, which is a shame, but it's still cool. The pre-chorus is really cool, "Across the sea etc", the chorus riff is really cool, half time oddness, very cool, and the chorus it's rules... like the narco chorus, with the dark, deep vocals for effect... This song should have been the first song on the cd i beleive... it's not a "Closer" at all, it leaves you wanting a little bit more when the album ends... even though this is the SE that i'm listening to now, it still ends a little funny...
Love Bites is cool, not as strange as Death's version of Painkiller, but it's very very cool.
All the cowards hide reminds me of something from In Memory, thoe whole "Today you could lose your life..." thing is really cool. The chorus is annoying... but hey, its a bonus track, what do you expect...
Chances three is bad... that's all i can say
All in all, it's a good, solid album. The guitars are simple but effective, the drums are really solid, good ride work, the vocals are outstanding, and the lyrics are exceptional...
Nevemore isn't dead, they're just taking a break... thats all
When i got to We Disintegrate, i thought "This is damn cool", and then i thought "Why is it that i don't appreciate this album then?", and i began to wonder about it. Simply put, i had expectations for this album, and too many expectations for Jeff as a guitarist and a writer. But what if i get past that? I mean, i really like Iced Earth's horror show these days, and that's neither brilliant in guitarplaying nor writing, and i remember feeling the same way about it when i first got it "Wow, this really blows -compared to their other stuff-", and that's where i beleive i go wrong. I put expectations on a band, and then when they come up with something a little left feild, or I enterperet their last album in a different way than they themselves did, that's where the dissapointment comes in.
Listening to Dead Heart in a Dead world as the follow up to Dreaming Neon Black and Politics of Ecstasy, it totally flops. There's no two ways about it. BUT! What if i were to just listen to the album as it is, forget that it's nevermore, forget what jeff is really capable of and what he's done in the past, forget POE and DNB, and just take it as it is...?
...The fact of the matter is, I'd like the album.
Sure, the production kills it, but it's a cool, rockin' album. Inside Four Walls has got a good, grating riff that sticks in your head, and songs like We Disintegrate have just got a cool vibe to them. Sure, it's not a dark album at all, and alot of the guitar is just chordal progressions, but that's okay, it's STILL a step ahead of most other bands out there.
With the death of Chuck Schuldiner and the onset and slow acceptance that "There will be no more Death albums", i realize now that i can't afford to be dissapointed by one of my favourite bands like Nevermore. Hell, i don't like Symbolic (
), i don't like the album at all, despite Perrenial Quest possibly being my favourite Death Song of all time. It suffers from fairly straightforward riffing (well, for Chuck that is...), and a terrible, boomy production like Dead Heart in a Dead world... But it's material from my favourite guitarist, and the guy who i ultimately want to be like as a person, and in all reality, it's some of the best stuff out there, despite my expectations for it.So here's my take on Dead Heart in a Dead world, a review if you will, with no bias, and no spite and dissapointment, just like this was the first time i listened to nevermore, as if POE never existed *gasp*.
Dead Heart in a Dead World.
Aside from Dreaming Neon Black and the art he did for Redemption, i am not a fan of Travis Smith at all. It doesn't suit Nevermore at all. But then again, The Politics of Ecstasy has got possibly the worst cover in existance
So i take it as it is. I don't like the cover, but it's a nice, neat package, and the art on the reverse of the album is actually pretty neat. The blue themed album is really cool, and the cd being white itself is a nice touch. (In the case of the SE edition, the cover art is Brown, and the cd too, which doesn't work so well). The art behind the cd itself (The vulture, the statue and the hearts hanging from the trees) is absolutely awesome.I always get a buzz putting a nevermore cd in, and for some reason, this time, i got the same buzz from DH that i do when i put POE in the player, that "Oh my god, i'm about to hear it again! Yeah!" feeling.
Narcosynthesis kicks in. I really don't like the first riff at all, but it gets better from there on. This song has got one of the coolest choruses ever, and possibly some of WD's best vocals too. The verse riff reminds me of Fear Factory, the one note pulse, and the hi-hat going continuously. The psudo-muting is a nice touch in this riff, some muted, others half muted, and at the end no muting. The semi-chorus riff is pretty cool (How did it come to this etc), The thing that strikes me is Warrel's vocals. My guess is that he likes Dani Filth, the whispering behind the semi-chorus is really really cool, i didn't even realize that there was whispering untill i listened to it this time.
Then comes the chorus, really really cool... half time drums... the guitars are just simple chordal phrases, which is cool, it lets WD have the stage... then it whacks back into the "fear factory riff", it hits you straight in the face, demands your attention for the next time the chorus comes in...
It's a simple, but cool song. The solo starts of basic, little melody, but then it kicks into a full time rhythm, and it actually reminds me of thelast section of the "This Sacrement" solo, where he is hammering on and off around the 12'th and 10'th fret, making a quasi-tapping feel to it.. pretty cool idea.
Then comes We Disintegrate... and seriously, sitting here in front of my computer, this song makes me want to raise my fist in the air and scream "FUCKING METAL!!!" for some reason. The little melody and strange syncopated drumming pattern at the start is cool, using a darker scale, it's a cool touch. Then warrel's vocals come in... ha ha... this dude rules. Sanctuary plays a part in this... while not as high as battle angels, it's pretty friggin hard to sing along with, especially with all that random vibrato kicking around the place... The little chorus after the verse is nice, it's a little doomy, with some nice high and low harmony ideas from WD.
The next song smacks me in the guy... seriously... it's almost a Death Metal riff that starts the song... and that segull squeal is damn cool... Morbid Angel eat your heart out...
Evolution 169, a slower, doomier song, pretty cool. Strange lyrics, but it's a nice touch... It's ironic in a way... just think ,thousands of people going to a ball game, or thousands in their homes watching the same show... are we just rats in a genetic experiment of some mad scientific overlord? The TV lies... It's a depressing song, very very good lyrics...
Then there's THE RIVERDRAGON. this is a cool song too... the main riff is a nu-metal riff, but it's still cool... The verse riff is another Fear Factory style riff... and Warrel's vocals are amazing... Then there comes a faster, really really cool riff, a headbanging riff, fuck yeah, this is a song they would play live... Another cool chorus... "The riverdragon has come, souls wash away" it's a nice topic this, i can't remember, but i read somewhere about floods in asia somewhere, and it was because they had created dams throughout the whole city that it was so bad, it was just a channel of death basically, wiping out everything in it's path... When the waters came everyone was screaming "The riverdragon has come!!" it's fairly eerie to think about, but it's an upbeat song, so it's cool. The solo is nice, it's worshipped around here just like the This Sacrament solo. It's a simple neoclassical phrase, pretty cool, not particularily difficult to play, but it's effective.
The Heart Collecter. Nice, neat song. Not a favourite of mine at all, but it's solid.
Engines of Hate... Fuckyeah... that's a cool motiv at the start... and the riff after is really cool, with the offbeat ending... cool. The higher pitched intro to the main riff is annoying as hell, but the riff it's is great... some nice hammering. The vocals are once again amazing, with a bit of a growl in them. The lyrics are great, using the "mind expansion" ideas of POE here and there "Feast on my mind's semen..." etc.
Sounds of Silence. That's one headache of a riff
Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang the riff after is very cool tho... then the half time bit is aweosme... AWESOME, it's surprisingly difficult to play actually, another seagull sqeal, and we come to a nu-metal groove... that's okay tho, it fits. The vocals are cool, effects soaked whispering... when the normal vocals come in, i get a chill... Very cool idea, to make it into a darker song musically... i always appreciated the lyrics of the original, but the music was just too 60's pop for me.Insignificant... cool song. Dead Heart style acoustic guitar.... more great lyrics and vocals...
Beleive in nothing, pure mush, i can't even listen to this song, especially after i saw a cut version of the song with a terrible videoclip attatched on tv the other day... the vocals are great, the lyrics are decent, it's got a nice chorus, but the guitars just bother me. Jeff was never one for chords... but like i said, i'm taking this album as it is, not how i percieve it should be...!
Now, this song fucking rules... Dead Heart in a Dead World... this absolutely kicks my ass... starts of with a "cenotaph" style bass riff, some crackles and fuzz for effect, an "After the war" vision comes to mind, an old man looking about on the nuclear waste that was once his city... The heavy riff is fucking cool... the production makes it a little muddy, and like Sounds of Silence, makes it a little bit of a headache to listen to at times, which is a shame, but it's still cool. The pre-chorus is really cool, "Across the sea etc", the chorus riff is really cool, half time oddness, very cool, and the chorus it's rules... like the narco chorus, with the dark, deep vocals for effect... This song should have been the first song on the cd i beleive... it's not a "Closer" at all, it leaves you wanting a little bit more when the album ends... even though this is the SE that i'm listening to now, it still ends a little funny...
Love Bites is cool, not as strange as Death's version of Painkiller, but it's very very cool.
All the cowards hide reminds me of something from In Memory, thoe whole "Today you could lose your life..." thing is really cool. The chorus is annoying... but hey, its a bonus track, what do you expect...
Chances three is bad... that's all i can say
All in all, it's a good, solid album. The guitars are simple but effective, the drums are really solid, good ride work, the vocals are outstanding, and the lyrics are exceptional...
Nevemore isn't dead, they're just taking a break... thats all
