Mudvayne. The band that is the heart and soul of the Nu-Metal movement. When people think of Mudvayne they generally think of weird people with makeup on and space alien costumes. They tend to not look past the album cover of this cd and listen to it all the way through. LD 50 was Mudvayne's major label debut. Previously they released Kill, I Oughtta, an impossibly hard album to find, as just over 1000 copies were produced. In response to asking if they were going to rerelease it on Epic Records (their current label) they said that they were not going to, they were looking to go forward not backward and the album was made just for the local fan base they had prior to LD 50. Now onto LD 50.
L.D. 50 begins with Monolith, nothing much just an intro, and leads directly into
Dig. The first single from
L.D. 50,
Dig starts out with trade off between the guitar and bass. Already this album is thrust into gear. From Chad Grey's frantic and overlapped screaming, to the drums driving double bass to Martinie's pummeling bass playing this song is intense. The only song off of
L.D. 50 without any clean singing this was chosen as the first single. Clocking in at just above two and a half minutes this album gets you ready for an amazing album. Like
Dig,
Internal Primates Forever is intense as hell. The bass is very audible and sounds like someone is groaning and moaning which goes surprisingly well with this song. This song is about being addicted to drugs, and how you can't stop them no matter what it makes you do.
-1 is track number four on
L.D. 50. It starts out very different from the previous tracks, a faded in guitar intro, with a few bass notes mimicking the bass drums. We hear Grey's clean voice for the first time as he changes between actual singing and a harsher talking tone.
Losses, losers and more, gain of life's pleasures cohorts listen
behind the doors to a life meaningless less than 0 in me all my walls
falling down pains aloft misery
I'm sure that the lessons were learned I'm sure that the punishments
went well deserved by the pawn in the plan taste of shit bitterness
walk from me everything systematically
This song changes between being really heavy and gut wrenching, to being somber and almost haunting. Even during the soft moments you get the feeling that it's intense.
Death Blooms begins with the guitar and bass going using artificial harmonics, a rare thing for bass. Tribbett uses power chords for most of the song, with a few section being single notes. The bass is again very audible, and is easily felt.
Death Blooms lyrical meaning has some disputes. Some people say that it has to do with Grey's grandmother being kept on Life Support against her wishes, whilst others think that is has to do with when she was in her old age her family neglected her because of it. Both have evidence to support them, but decide for yourself. http://www.lyricsfreak.com/m/mudvayne/death+blooms_20096881.html .
Golden Ratio is the first interlude on
LD 50.
Cradle starts off with a pull riff from guitarist Tribbett. Probably the most catchy section off of this entire album is the little fill at about two minutes. The drums and guitar make a really catchy beat, which is complemented by the screaming, and the excellent bass playing. The intro riff is repeated later in the song, and then the beginning of the song is basically repeated.
Nothing To Gein begins with guitar again like most songs, only this time Chad is singing over it. Most peoples favorite song, the songs lyrics go with the overall feel. It's about seeing the world through the eyes of a sociopath and serial killer, (like Ed Gein), hence lines like
Deliver the remains from her womb of earth,
Prep the rack and tie up for new love's rebirth,
Covert understanding of novice surgery,
I'll focus concentration and only take just what I need
For sickness I'm masticating,
Dancing and masturbating,
Celebrate in fields of night with skin upon my face
If I soak my hands in others blood am I sick,
If I wash my hands in others blood am I sick,
If I drench myself in others blood am I sick,
If I bathe myself in others blood...
This song is Martinie's biggest standout. His bass is technically amazing, and his feel is unmatched in Nu-Metal.
Mutatis Mutandis is another interlude, with the ending of
Nothing To Gein during the intro.
Everything And Nothing starts off with a simple drum beat, like
-1 the bass mimics the bass drum. This song is more mellow than the rest of the album. The guitar plays some clean riffs, and even the heavy metal blasting isn't to intense. Mostly because of how catchy this song is, it really grabs your attention and you find yourself humming it later that day. According to Chad,
Quote:
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This is a love song, about bad love
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Severed hits with a haunting guitar riff and a unique sounding slide riff from Martinie. The entire song is based around it. The bass isn't as frantic as on other song, it follows the guitar at points, and isn't slaps and pops like before. It contains more runs than anything. Towards the end of the song it stops, and after a few moments of silence it begins again. It's light with some clean guitar and Grey singing a few lines.The distorted guitar comes in with a start stop riff on the open E and A strings (or whatever it is with the weird tuning). The songs goes back to the chorus for a while.
Recombinant Resurgence is another interlude.
Prod is a departure from the typical
LD 50 song. It starts out with a cool guitar part, that is played with Greg's third, fourth and fifth fingers and a lot of distortion and volume. The drums join in with some fills around it and Grey does some clean singing over it with the lyrics
Emotions inside us troubling,
The hatred inside us escalating,
The sickness inside us keeps us weak,
The masses inside of us suffering they are bleeding,
The calling inside us sick with greed,
The voices calling to us deafening we're not listening
The bass on this track uses frequent slaps, and pops throughout
Prod. For the most part this song uses clean singing, with a few brief moments of yelling during the first half, but when he starts saying we're killing ourselves he starts screaming. The guitar takes a back seat to the vocals of the song, as does every other instrument.
Pharmaecopia once again the intro is guitar. This time however it's artificial harmonics (not the same kind as in
Death Blooms). This is my least favorite song off of this album. It sounds like filler, the guitars are just start stop riffs, and the vocals are spoken with some screaming. It all sounds like a jumbled mess to me though. The second half of the song is ok though, as it's faded out it sounds really cool, like Grey is fading away.
Under My Skin blasts off with Grey screaming and a fast guitar riff. The chorus has some weird guitar with an effect played with it, it's not that it sounds out of place, but it is a tad unnecessary. This song really showcases some of the hip hop elements that make them Nu-Metal. Half way through it's just the drums doing a hip hop style beat, the bass doing pops and slaps, and Chad rapping. The most intense song off of the album it is really in your face.
(K)now F(Orever) is different from most songs on
LD 50. It has a palm muted single note riff played. The chorus is really catchy too. When Grey yells
I'm not beggin' for your fuckin' change
I'm not beggin' for your fuckin' change
I'm in touch with myself,
All alone within myself,
All one. Alone
It sounds so intriguing, like you can't stop listening. The rest of the song isn't anything really special though, the bass drums stand out, but aside from that, it's nothing that hasn't been on the previous tracks.
Lethal Dosage is the final track on
LD 50. It's another interlude, with fading static, this classic album comes to a close.
Pros
- Great instrumentation, all the members are amazing at their chosen instruments
- Intense, every real song on here is emotionally draining, but it leaves you feeling satisfied
- The song writing is above average, it doesn't follow one specific pattern
Cons
- The interludes are a tad unnecessary, I understand it's to make this album sound like one big song, but some of them range past the two minute mark
- Intense, every real song on here is emotionally draining
Mudvayne is...
Chad Grey - Vocals
Greg Tribbett - Guitar
Ryan Martinie - Bass
Matt McDonough - Drums
