I was the first person to read this, honest! Just didn't have much else to say besides "good review," because I have no knowledge of the band and so, I don't have a lot to add to the discussion. Really smooth writing though, so great job, man.
| | | Album Rating: 3.0
"How did you like Rebirth, Moreira?"
Not so. That song totally relates to that part in which you mention that Lessard's vocals are "oddly quite". Very monotonous. If this is the big extent of the album, they just went from overly edgy, to not edgy at all.
| | | I like Rebirth, but yeah it really is a lesser version of Intrinsic. It sounds good but nothing really comes out. Also, they really don't sound like the same band anymore.
| | | Has anybody listen to LVL 1? Seriously, compare that to LVL 2 and you'll notice a starker difference than this to LVL 2.
| | | This sounded boring but I didn't think it would be this bad...
this band has never really interested me though
| | | I once listened to about two tracks of Level 1, and really didn't like it.
| | | About to go to bed, so I'll give you some long-overdue feedback before I do.
I think there’s a case to be made for Last Chance To Reason’s prominence in the progressive metal scene.
Drop the "I think," it works just fine without it
the group’s sound has not always been a terribly original one
Say dis in leyuss wurds, mang
infamous style of technical ability
is "technical ability" a style now? maybe it is, I don't know, but to me that's like taking an electronic producer and calling his style "immaculate production"
overkill, right?
I'm confused as to why that's overkill. After all, fuckin' Coheed made music about their own comic books, and no one's calling them "overkill." In prog especially, anything's fair game. If anything, it's better they're doing it about original material rather than Lord of the Rings for the billionth time.
Many found the prominent synth lines of Level 2 to be too much, instead hoping for a more sensible take on progressive. Likely as a response, Last Chance To Reason tailored Level 3 entirely without synths, foregoing the most controversial ingredient of its music.
You can probably combine these - the first is kind of a throwaway sentence.
more next post
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Level 3 comes across as the album Last Chance To Reason believes its fans want to hear. Many found the prominent synth lines of Level 2 to be too much, instead hoping for a more sensible take on progressive. Likely as a response, Last Chance To Reason tailored Level 3 entirely without synths, foregoing the most controversial ingredient of its music. Furthermore, there isn’t a single trace of a breakdown here-- I can imagine the midsection of “Programmed For Battle” made some fans cry foul. Of course, maybe I’m assuming too much here. It’s possible, of course, that the band decided on its own to bypass these elements of its music. But it’s hard for me to take that stance seriously, especially considering many of the band’s contemporaries-- The Contortionist, Between the Buried and Me, etc.-- have made similar executive decisions in the last couple of years.
I kind of find this a waste of a paragraph. You essentially say "there's no synths, there's no breakdowns, and it seems the band is following the popular path of 'maturing.'" At best, that's maybe three or four sentences worth of material - at absolute most. Of course, wordiness isn't always a bad thing, but in a 10-paragraph review like this the more you can pare down the better.
It feels like more than coincidence that these stylistic shifts have happened
So is it a coincidence or not? I hear you saying "It might be a coincidence, but I cynically doubt that. But it does feel like coincidence"
The two are simply incompatible
Weren't you the one who said excess adverbs were bad? : P
The songs speak for themselves, but only if you can distinguish their voices from one another. The amount of monotony on this release is perplexing-- each track is a maelstrom of static, sterile riffing, accompanied by similarly insipid musicianship. The vibrancy of tracks like “Upload Complete” has all but been abandoned, leaving room instead for reserved-- and frankly, confused-- progressive metal.
This is right on the money. Nice job.
Good review overall. I've definitely seen you write better, and I've definitely seen you write worse. It's a new style, granted, this 10-paragraph behemoth, and it's an admirable effort on your part with mostly good results.
| | | All very good points, man. Appreciated as always.
And yes, I am, but that sentence would sound so freaking flat otherwise!! ;]
| | | it was ok
| | | I'm only one opinion, Andrew, but I won't be surprised if quite a few people felt similarly.
| | | No guarantees
Listening to Level 2 for the first time in a year, shit it's so good why are they just a worse Contortionist now :'[ I miss the nerdiness of their music
| | | I think this is like...the first 2- something review you've done in a long time
| | | Yep, been preoccupied with the good stuff lately. Haven't rated an album this low as either contributor or staffer yet-- food 4 thought
| | | Album Rating: 3.3
This is the first album of theirs that I've heard. I liked it and have added their other two to Spotify.
| | | Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it! Level 2 was much more my thing, but I can definitely see a lot of the progressive metal followers enjoying this album more than me.
| | | I thought both of their previous albums were pretty enjoyable. It seems they just keep creating more parallels with Between the Buried and Me, though. From the almost deathcore sound of the first, to the proggy, technical, almost metalcore sound in the second. If this sounds like a weaker Contortionist, it may still be decent to me, as I do love The Contortionist, but I'm wary.
| | | The only way I differ in that assessment is that BTBAM is still making melodically sound music. Sure, I'm not the biggest fan of what they do with their melodies these days, but their songs have distinct characteristics because of the way the musicians structure the songs, and the production-- while flawed for sure-- still lets the songs shine through it. Here, many of the songs seem to be wanting to accomplish the same thing, which utterly destroys the feel that Level 2 had. Because that album had its peaks and troughs, and really insanely catchy melodic moments and harmonies that I was crazy over. It's more about the rhythms here, which is disappointing to me.
| | | Have you heard Level 2, man? That album is easily as technical as anything BTBAM has done.
| | | WELL THEN, YOU SHOULD KNOW BETTER THAN TO DO SAY SUCH THINGS.
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