Review Summary: Another excellent work from the almighty Devin Townsend, Epicloud doesn't only appeal to Devy fanboys, but to mainstream listeners as well.
Devin Townsend, as we all know, is an incredibly versatile musician, blending elements such as metal, rock, ambient, progressive, and even new age. With his latest project, The Devin Townsend Project, he has taken his musical diversity to the next level, with albums such as the chaotic, bone-crushing, heavy, and comedic Deconstruction, to the soothing, relaxing, and quite calming sounds of Ghost, both released in 2011. A year later, Devin decides to basically draw a line in between those two records with his 2012 release Epicloud. What I mean by drawing a line in between Deconstruction and Ghost is making sure that this record is not too heavy for some of the lighter listeners, and not too light for the heavier listeners, but instead creating something right in between. In this LP Devin decides to bring Anneke van Giersbergen back into the studio, like he did with the DTP's sophomore album entitled Addicted, which in my opinion is one of the best things he could've done for this record.
This album starts off with a near 40 second introduction called "Effervescent!". Just from this intro you can tell that this is gonna be pretty different, considering that a gospel choir seems to be singing this. It then gets right into "True North", which immediately starts with Anneke's soft but still strong vocals. This song may come off as cheesy on the first listen, considering the main lyrics, "I love you, I love you, I need you, I've always been around you...", however the song later goes in more of a progressive state, with an incredible key change and, of course, soaring vocals from the mighty Devin Townsend. It ends with a small reprise of Effervescent!, rounding out those two tracks.
Then we get to the lead single off this LP, "Lucky Animals". First of all I can definitely see why this was chosen as the lead single for this LP, considering its hard-but-catchy sound and the non-progressive state that some may actually find annoying. However I love this track. It maybe one of the simplest track here, but its definitely the one that will stay in your head the longest.
After that, "Liberation" enters. This one is definitely catchy too, but a bit less annoying. This track definitely has a solid hard rock anthem feel to it, especially considering the main hook of the song, "ROCK! LETS ROCK...". I highly recommend this track mainly for people who just love rock music, because that exactly what "Liberation" is: great and catchy hard rock music.
We start to slow it down a bit with the next track, "Where We Belong". This is the first instance of acoustic guitar in this record, with very soft vocals from Devin throughout. It gets right into some driving electric guitar for the chorus, and the choir joins Devin for the last chorus, which is a nice finishing touch. For me there isn't a whole lot to say about this song, but it is just a great one to listen to.
And then there is a small break from all of the fun, but not for long, as electric guitar comes in for the next track, "Save Our Now". If I'm correct, Devin took nearly the exact chord progression from "The Island Pt. 1" by British electronic rock band Pendulum (I also believe he asked permission from the guys, so he's safe). The thing I love about this track is the fact that although this and Pendulum's song have the exact same chord progression, Devin is able to make it his own, with wonderful dueling vocals from Devin and Anneke. Definitely a great song to listen to, and quite catchy.
The choir and Anneke hold out their vocals in order to lead into the next track, "Kingdom". This track is actually a cover from his previous album Physicist; he decided to redo this song mainly because he didn't like the way the original version came out, due to the slightly weak vocals and relatively poor production. This song certainly grabs your attention with the driving, distorted, palm-muted riff in the very beginning. Although this song may seem hard-hitting, its seems to be more uplifting than anything, with Devin's absolutely incredible vocals, and almost a heaven-like atmosphere. This is certainly one of the high points of the record and certainly one to treasure.
"Kingdom" leads right into "Divine", a much, much softer presence than "Kingdom", with soft vocals from Devin, clean guitar, and great harmonies. One of the shorter tracks, it still is quite emotional, and just a dang good song.
We then get to "Grace". This is DEFINITELY one of the most memorable tracks not only on this LP, but from his entire career. It starts with soothing vocals from Anneke and clean guitars to go with it. But as soon as she's done, you get completely blown away from the chugging guitars and operatic vocals from Anneke and the choir. Devin enters with a hard-hitting and heavier vocal approach, and soon he has everyone chanting "LIFE! LOVE! LIVE! LEARN!". Near the end is Devin screaming "NEVER FEAR LOVE!" several times, before Anneke goes back into the soft sound, and just when you think this track's over, Devin screams "NEVER FEAR LOVE!" just a couple more times to conclude it. Definitely a track worth your time.
"GIVE ME MORE!" is what starts the next track entitled "More!". This one definitely has more of a dark, heavy, but groovy sound than the other tracks, but still doesn't seem to lose its passion. I believe this is the only track with a guitar solo, which, of course, is pretty sweet. The song ends with a riff that you can definitely headbang to, having a nice groovy but metal feel to it. Nice one.
"Lessons" is a one minute interlude with slight harmonies and sweet guitar playing. It leads into "Hold On" which begins with acoustic guitar and soft vocals from Dev, before it gets into driving power chords and Anneke's soaring vocals for the chorus. Not a whole lot to say about this track, but it has a feel to it that just really makes you feel much better whenever you listen to it, no matter what your mood is at the time. Loving this track.
And finally this LP concludes with "Angel". A song mildly similar to "Hold On", but not much. It begins with organ and Anneke's soaring vocals singing "MY ANGELLLL!". This song has the entire choir singing when the guitar and drums kick in. This song has an amazing verse, with Devy and the choir leading it, and a nice guitar riff. You really couldn't have chosen a better song to conclude this record with. This song, along with "True North", ends with an epic reprise of "Effervescent!", the perfect ending for an album like this.
Overall, I recommend this album not only for Devin Townsend fanboys (like myself), but for mainstream listeners as well, and just music lovers in general. Sure, you may not like this if you only like Strapping Young Lad's insanely chaotic stuff, but if you're more open minded, definitely listen to and buy this record. This one is catchy, fun, emotional, and it just plain rules. Not exactly perfect, but pretty darn close. This one gets a 9/10 for me. Definitely check it out.
