Knowing the career Devin has had up until this point, you know that he has ventured into a ton of musical spectres, and yet, they all seem to intertwine on this record in a way that should not be possible without it sounding like crap. Seemingly every part of Devin's career is represented in here, minus the "Punky Brüster..." punk album, acting as sort of a retrospective of what the man has accomplished. We have the earthly tones of "Terria", the soothing calmness of both "Ghost" and "Casualties of Cool", the epic cheese of "Epicloud", the brain shattering brutality of his Strapping Young Lad days, and of course, we also got some Ziltoid in here (and in the album artwork as well, why wasn't that featured on the cover instead of that white background?). It is a goody bag of sounds that mix surprisingly well.
Speaking of mixes, the production on this record is out right phenomenal. It is as loud and vibrant as you could expect from a Devin record, but he somehow turned it up another notch, making every single little noise crystal clear for our ears, and the sound design shines as well with these small clips here and there. Even if Devin did much of this on his own, he did still get a lot of help from his friends, with a guest list that Devin fans should mostly recognize. We got Steve Vai, Anneke Van Giersbergen, Ché Aimee Dorval, Ryan Dahle, Morgan Ågren, Chad Kroeger... wait, Chad Kroeger? From Nickelback? Well I'll be damned, that is a surprise, and he is on the heaviest track too ("Hear Me")!
To say the least, this is an emotional record that is gonna take you on one hell of a ride, starting off slowly with the intro "Castaway", then flinging you into orbit with "Genesis", a truly chaotic song with a cheesy sing along chorus and disco beats, and I love every second of it. "Spirits Will Collide" follows after with tons of cheesy power pop that is on the verge of being too much, but the album transitions early enough to "Evermore", a neat little catchy tune that just makes you smile and nod your head sideways o the beat, just like the cartoon astronaut cat in the music video. Then we have "Sprite" that opens up with some Dr. Seuss, just to roll with some Spring feelings, a very fitting tactic considering the current season.
After that, Devin wonders if we can hear him in "Hear Me", and yeah, we do. This is complete madness in a can, borrowing both from SYL and "Deconstruction", while also throwing in Anneke and Chad into the mix, creating an unholy mix of epic emotions and insanity, which of course ends up being amazing. Then we get transported into a Disney musical with "Why?", which is beautiful for sure, but so odd still. "Borderlands" is next, and it is one of the more memorable tracks with its steady and catchy main riff. Add in some casual cool into it all, and we get a laid back 11 minute track that goes by in a flash.
The interlude "Requiem" prepares us for the final stage of "Empath", the insane 23 and a half minute monster "Singularity", a six-piece track that is the epic finish to end epic finishes. At first, I had a rough time getting into this beast, and it did not help that we had already been given 50 minutes of music prior, but trust me, this is a grower. Every time you listen to this monstrosity, you find new angles and parts that speaks to you, making you wanna come back to it time and time again. I also found it stunning that all six bits of "Singularity" where unique in its own right, being really different from each other, yet they all come together so perfectly that the transitions are hard to notice. It is still not my favourite track on "Empath", but "Singularity" is a track that deserves respect.
At the end of the day, "Empath" is ultimately Devin in a nutshell, an album that is so insanely expansive that it is hard to get a grip on, but still so accessible that you cannot get enough of it. It is obvious that Devin has released all of his restraints, going all in on this record with everything that he got. It acts as the perfect summary of the man's career, while also showing that there is still a ton of material left in that shiny head of his. This is an insane record, one that has tons of emotions, one that no other musician can make. It is effervescent quality through and through, just a brilliant effort from a brilliant mind.
Songs worthy of recognition: Hear Me, Genesis, Evermore, Borderlands, Singularity
Rating: 9,5/10 Sprites
https://www.hevydevy.com/
https://twitter.com/dvntownsend
More reviews of Devin Townsend (solo work)
Punky Brüster - Cooked On Phonics
Ocean Machine: Biomech
Infinity
Physicist
Terria
Devlab
The Hummer
Ziltoid The Omniscient
No comments:
Post a Comment