The Dillinger Escape Plan - Miss Machine
Relapse - RELCD6587 - 2004
By Paddy Walsh
Finally the new Dillinger Escape Plan is upon us. After the triumph of the Irony Is A Dead Scene EP comes their first full-length since 1999's Calculating Infinity. Things have changed somewhat since the days of their being a technical jazzcore outfit. Dmitri is gone, temporarily replaced by Mike Patton for the EP and now they have another new guy named Greg.
The new vocalist is charged with the rather unenviable task of being Patton's successor, fairly impossible you might say, and you'd be right. So I felt it would probably be in his interest to simply be his own man and find his own voice. Unfortunately, Greg often sounds like a second-rate Patton clone on Miss Machine. This is a shame, as he is a decent vocalist in his own right, but his irksome attempts at imitating Pattons Schizo vocal histrionics sound forced and unnecessary. Witness the blatant Tomahawk-isms of 'Phone Home' for instance, or the obvious Faith No More inspired chorus of 'Setting Fire To Sleeping Giant'.
Of course this isn't just Greg's fault. Perhaps he is just finding his feet as a vocalist, but the band seem to have gone for hooks this time round, rather than the all round bludgeoning of Calculating Infinity. This was demonstrated on the EP and worked well there, as the spaz-riffage intertwined with Patton's amazing vocals exhibited a chemistry which is, alas, missing here. There are some great songs however, the opening four are classic Dillinger Escape Plan, with some nice new ideas incorporated such as the rather epic finale to 'Sunshine The Werewolf'. Opener 'Panasonic Youth' shows the band in fine form too, perhaps being a misleading indicator of things to follow. 'Baby's First Coffin' sees the band managing to successfully strike the balance between bludgeon and subtlety and is thus a highlight. It's when the band dumb things down that it all goes a bit pear-shaped, such as on the aforementioned 'Phone Home'. 'Unretrofied' shows the group inserting an annoying emo-esque chorus into proceedings, which completely sucks the venom from their attack and leaves them sounding a little too limp-wristed for what was once such an overwhelmingly powerful band.
Ill executed songwriting decisions aside, Miss Machine is solid if a little unspectacular. It lacks the visceral impact of Calculating Infinity and can't match the schizophrenic madness of Irony Is A Dead Scene. The Dillinger Escape Plan seem to be trying to all things to everyone and may have forgotten what made them so great in the first place.
7/10
The Dillinger Escape Plan's Official Website
Relapse Records' Official Website
Relapse - RELCD6587 - 2004
By Paddy Walsh
Finally the new Dillinger Escape Plan is upon us. After the triumph of the Irony Is A Dead Scene EP comes their first full-length since 1999's Calculating Infinity. Things have changed somewhat since the days of their being a technical jazzcore outfit. Dmitri is gone, temporarily replaced by Mike Patton for the EP and now they have another new guy named Greg.
The new vocalist is charged with the rather unenviable task of being Patton's successor, fairly impossible you might say, and you'd be right. So I felt it would probably be in his interest to simply be his own man and find his own voice. Unfortunately, Greg often sounds like a second-rate Patton clone on Miss Machine. This is a shame, as he is a decent vocalist in his own right, but his irksome attempts at imitating Pattons Schizo vocal histrionics sound forced and unnecessary. Witness the blatant Tomahawk-isms of 'Phone Home' for instance, or the obvious Faith No More inspired chorus of 'Setting Fire To Sleeping Giant'.
Of course this isn't just Greg's fault. Perhaps he is just finding his feet as a vocalist, but the band seem to have gone for hooks this time round, rather than the all round bludgeoning of Calculating Infinity. This was demonstrated on the EP and worked well there, as the spaz-riffage intertwined with Patton's amazing vocals exhibited a chemistry which is, alas, missing here. There are some great songs however, the opening four are classic Dillinger Escape Plan, with some nice new ideas incorporated such as the rather epic finale to 'Sunshine The Werewolf'. Opener 'Panasonic Youth' shows the band in fine form too, perhaps being a misleading indicator of things to follow. 'Baby's First Coffin' sees the band managing to successfully strike the balance between bludgeon and subtlety and is thus a highlight. It's when the band dumb things down that it all goes a bit pear-shaped, such as on the aforementioned 'Phone Home'. 'Unretrofied' shows the group inserting an annoying emo-esque chorus into proceedings, which completely sucks the venom from their attack and leaves them sounding a little too limp-wristed for what was once such an overwhelmingly powerful band.
Ill executed songwriting decisions aside, Miss Machine is solid if a little unspectacular. It lacks the visceral impact of Calculating Infinity and can't match the schizophrenic madness of Irony Is A Dead Scene. The Dillinger Escape Plan seem to be trying to all things to everyone and may have forgotten what made them so great in the first place.
7/10
The Dillinger Escape Plan's Official Website
Relapse Records' Official Website
