After giving this album's promo leak countless spins, attempting to enjoy even a fraction of the material, I've come to the conclusion that this record is one-hundred percent rubbish. Not a damn note or chord on here worth listening to, that's how low this album manages to find ground. This may come as a major blow to longtime fans such as myself and the many on this forum, but it didn't really come as a suprise. The band went apeshit on their self-titled disc and even City is considered a modern classic among fans who tend to lean towards a more schizophrenic taste in metal. Alien showed bits and pieces of other influence while still maintaining that madness that we all love best, such as some industrial/electronica here and even a little bit of hardcore/metalcore there. Still, with frontman Devin Townsend's new solo project intact and a handful of his other side-projects recently resurrected from the dead, the towering amounts of prog-rock here isn't too eye-widening.
So does the album have any moments whatsoever? Okay, maybe saying that it was complete garbage was a bit too harsh. After all, veterans would probably take a liking towards tracks such as "You Suck" and also the lead-single off of the album, "Wrong Side". But those sure as hell won't save "Monument", "Far Beyond Metal", "Fucker", or the Dream Theater-meets-Ion Dissonance pulse of the title track from pulling this album into the gutter. The first tune, "Decimator", may leave a hint of decency, but not enough to make this absolutely disappointing waste of sonic degredation worth your buck. Go out and buy Aeolian by The Ocean instead, you won't regret it.
3.9/10:Smug:
So does the album have any moments whatsoever? Okay, maybe saying that it was complete garbage was a bit too harsh. After all, veterans would probably take a liking towards tracks such as "You Suck" and also the lead-single off of the album, "Wrong Side". But those sure as hell won't save "Monument", "Far Beyond Metal", "Fucker", or the Dream Theater-meets-Ion Dissonance pulse of the title track from pulling this album into the gutter. The first tune, "Decimator", may leave a hint of decency, but not enough to make this absolutely disappointing waste of sonic degredation worth your buck. Go out and buy Aeolian by The Ocean instead, you won't regret it.
3.9/10:Smug:
