Review Summary: ..we will all experience trauma during our lives.
36 Crazyfists- Time and Trauma.
36CF have been a prolific band since their debut album back in 2002. A new album would surface around the two year mark. It’s not an easy feat to write; record and release an album in such a small time frame, plus tour in support of it. The fan base was spoilt, and came to expect and rely on this type of productivity and work rate.
Having released five albums in eight years and touring the world, father time and life had to eventually catch up to them. Responsibilities we must all one day succumb too, the responsibility of family.
Following the release of 2010’s Collisions and Castaways, tragedy had befallen the band, with the loss of lead singer Brock Lidows mother. This triggered a chain reaction of events that led to the band taking a five year hiatus.
Time was needed to rest up, re-evaluate and reset the sights of the band. This was a much needed respite. Collisions and Castaways, despite being a worthy addition to the catalogue, had garnered a mixed response upon release. Accusations of an uninspired direction musically and vocally now hung over the band. This type of response mixed with the ongoing personal issues, pulled the trigger on a much needed break from the rigors of the road and the studio.
A five year gap in the metal world is a long one. Metal fans are an impatient bunch, and quickly migrate on to the next band and so forth. But with 36CF, they took advantage of the connection social media allows bands and fans to make, and kept in touch with their fan base, ensuring them that new material would one day surface, so we should all just keep the faith.
Snippets of insider information were leaked on social media during their downtime. Pictures of instruments, microphones and rehearsal spaces would occasionally pop up. This encouraged a flurry of response from fans that have been waiting eagerly yet patiently for the Alaskan foursome to rise from the frozen ashes.
Further frustration would surface. The band announced that the album was recorded and ready to roll as late back as end of year 2013! But the band was without a label, having split with partner Ferret records.
So time was taken instead to fill up the fuel tanks, and take the band back out on the road. Time they could use to promote the new material and reclaim and ground that had slipped over the past half decade. It was also an opportunity to put some touring miles on the new rhythm section, drummer Kyle Baltus and returning bass player Mick Whitney.
Patience and loyalty was rewarded, and in early 2015, Time and Trauma was released to the world courtesy of spinefarm records, (Five finger death punch/Seether/Nightwish/Rammstein).
The title of the album perfectly sums up the mood and direction of this album. The earlier documented loss of Brocks mother, as expected, had a profound effect on him. The lyrics allow us access in to the reflective periods that he undertook following his loss, such as grief, anger, sorrow and acceptance.
The music is far more groove orientated than the previous 2 albums. It’s a combination of the angry stomp of ‘Bitterness the Star’ and the emotional impact of ‘A Snow Capped Romance’.
While the songs are not epic in length they are epic in their scope. Diving from bludgeoning heavy riffs that will send mosh pits into a frenzy, to grand soaring choruses with effortless ease. It is clear that 36 Crazyfists are playing fully to their strengths of creating highly emotive yet heavy songs.
The rhythm section has retained that hardcore groove, while the guitar furiously buzzes around, all wrapped up by the instantly identifiable vocals of Brock.
While it is all well and good returning to what you do best, it is ultimately the songs that stand the test of time. This is where ‘Time and Trauma’ truly shines, the songs are just simply incredibly well written and as a collective group of songs they flow effortlessly from one to the other.
There is an emotional intensity to the music that leaves you exhausted but very much uplifted at the end of the album. No song on the album sums this up better than ‘Also Am I’, it is truly a stunning song and could quite possibly be the best song they have ever written (yes that’s right, it’s that good).
Will this album bring the success which 36 Crazyfists deserve is hard to tell, it certainly deserves too. In a sea of carbon copy acts and mechanical metal by numbers, 36 Crazyfists have delivered an album that is very real, organic and emotionally engaging.
