Gojira - The Link (2003)

If "Terra Incognita" was Gojira's equivalent to crawling, then the sophomore effort entitled "The Link" is displaying a band who is taking their first, unbalanced steps to become a full grown entity. It is a record that takes every lesson the band learned through its predecessor, both good and bad, and improved upon (so no more double trips to Belgium). Still, with such complex patterns and rhythms at hand, the evolution was still slow, so let us see how far the band has come with the release of this album.

The biggest difference is obviously the production, which is much slicker this time around, allowing more freedom for all the beats and riffs to roam and show themselves how strong they are. This does mean that the band do not get the opportunity to create another dark and eerie record like the last one, but they do take full advantage of what they have, giving "The Link" a life of its own. It is still a little stiff in its performance, but it does its job well enough.

The (sorta) improved production also helps in making each track stand out more, and we got ourselves a hand full of impressive treats. "Remembrance" makes quite an entrance with its fast paced groovy rhythm that has a nice mix of crazy double bass and tribe like riffs that puts you in a headbanging voodoo trance. That middle part especially is the first taste of true Gojira magic, but not the last, because "Indians" shifts tempo with impressive precision, "Wisdom Comes" crushes with no mercy, and "Embrace The World" does a little of everything right.

Every member of the band also goes in the right direction. Mario's drumming is tighter, Joe and Christian's guitars show off more techniques, Jean-Michel's bass is more vibrant, and Joe expands his vocal range further. It is a complete team effort that makes "The Link" a natural progression for the band, and while it has its blemishes with a trio of instrumentals (with the best one being the closer "Dawn", which got some cool parts, but is far too long and repetitive), several sluggish parts, and a stagnant production, it still manages to entertain enough to get the listener to the very end. The highlights are high, and the lows are not on an embarrassing level, so "The Link" is definitely not the weakest of its kind.

Songs worthy of recognition: Remembrance, Indians, Embrace The World

Rating: 7/10 Inward Movements

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Helloween - Rabbit Don't Come Easy (2003)

After a trip through "The Dark Ride", Helloween went back to their happy place with a more uplifting effort for their 10th full length effort, one that definitely rivaled "Pink Bubbles Go Ape" in how wtf the album cover was. The phrase "Rabbit Don't Come Easy" is actually a play of the classic saying "pulling a rabbit out of the hat", referring to the line up changes that happened prior to the album, including Roland Grapow being replaced by Sascha Gerstner, and Mark Cross playing two of the tracks before falling ill, forcing Mikkey Dee of Motörhead fame to quickly step in. It is a fun title, but why did it have to be accompanied by that CGI abomination of an image? It is like watching the original "Toy Story" again, it has not aged well.

Fortunately for us, the music have not aged that much, building on that high octane power that we saw from "The Dark Ride", excluding the dark bits. It certainly has that Helloween feeling of pure power metal epicness that has made a lot of people falling in love with the band, and a lot of this comes from the massive amounts of fun this band seems to have playing this record, even slipping in some naughty lines in the lyrics like "Something's growing in my pants as I look into her eyes". It is silly, but what did you expect from a bunch of pumpkin heads.

The ideas has been flowing as well, with twelve songs coming together for just over an hour of run time. It is a meaty album for sure, but it goes by quite quickly with all the cool songs making you forget all about time. We have a bunch of really catchy songs in here that might make you scream, like the opening duo "Just A Little Sign" and "Open Your Life", the mid tempo groove item "Never Be A Star", and the heavenly "Hell Was Made In Heaven". There is definitely a chance your vocal chords will scream and beg for you to stop, so make sure you do not get too carried away while listening to this record.

The most impressive thing about this album though is the diversity of it, having the strength to show off a complete set of different moods, tempos, and styles. "Don't Stop Being Crazy" for example is a 90's Metallica style ballad that works as an excellent change of pace in the middle of the record, or how about "Liar" which is the exact opposite, a heavy, hard hitting steam roller of galloping riffs and pure anger. "Back Against The Wall" is heavy as well, but in a more fluent way where the drums commands the show more than the guitars. And to add a little nostalgic touch as well, we have "The Tune" that will surely make the old school fans happy.

The two most interesting songs in this record though can be found at the very end, starting with "Listen To The Flies" that has a great structure to it, building up to this neck hair rising chorus where the falsettos are on point, striking high on the epic scale. Still, it has some slower and melodic moments, making it an interesting case of metal goodness. Then we have "Nothing To Say", one of the strangest Helloween songs I have ever heard, just for the fact that it mixes so many different genres. We got this classic rock vibe that is very reminiscent of Def Leppard in the verse, which then goes into straight up reggae in the bridge, only to become slightly more modern rock in the chorus. It is strange, but it flows actually quite well, making it incredibly intriguing. The thing though that takes this song from being good to awesome is the ending, where the band goes full on "Stargazer" with its headbanging drive and epic feel. I am not kidding on this one, they even say "I see a rainbow rising", making it obvious that this is a full on tribute to the Rainbow classic. What a way to end a record.

So if you have not caught up to what I have said yet, "Rabbit Don't Come Easy" is a fun record, and while it is a tad bit long and have a couple of fillers, it is still a hell of a Helloween record, overflowing with neat ideas and memorable moments. It might be the most innovative Helloween record up to this point in their careers, which is impressive knowing what kind of struggles they had leading up to it. Well, they obviously had fun making "Rabbit Don't Come Easy", and it is just as fun listening to it.

Songs worthy of recognition: Listen To The Flies, Just A Little Sign, Open Your Life, Nothing To Say

Rating: 8/10 Liars

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Metallica - St. Anger (2003)

Everyone handles setbacks differently, trying to tackle the hard times as good as possible, but in almost any case, it ends up changing yourself in one way or another. Metallica certainly experienced a lot of hard ships between "Reload" and their 8th studio effort, "St. Anger", starting with bassist Jason Newsted leaving the band, then singer James Hetfield was forced to enter rehab because of drug and alcohol issues, which eventually sparked a lot of internal struggles within the band (and let us not forget the whole Napster thing, which forced this album to be released 5 days before the intended release date). Out of these dark days emerged a rugged Metallica, a more passionate band that had a ton of anger to ventilate, and they used their new record to do so. But as Kratos from the "God of War" series would tell all of you, anger can cloud one's judgment.

Over the 15 years that "St. Anger" has been out for the world to see, it has gotten a very rotten reputation, one that I hoped would try to counter at the end of the day, but nope, I can only agree with most of the negative criticism that has been spewed all over it. Let us tackle the two most common complaints first, the drumming, and the lack of solos. Now, an album certainly does not need solos to be good, and with the more punk vibe that this album has, I kind of get why the band did not add any, but I think it is a waste of talent when neither Hammett or Hetfield get to show their chops. As for the drumming, I have been trying my hardest to stay away from it in previous reviews, because it is like beating a dead horse, but here, it just cannot be ignored. The ringing sound of Ulrich's drums sounds like those modified oil drums you find on Caribbean calypso bands, and they do stick out like a sore thumb. God damn it.

But there are more problems with this album, unfortunately. Just like with the last two albums, the length is a huge issue here, but unlike "Load" and "Reload", where the albums where filled with dull fillers, "St. Anger" do have a good amount of energy, but a lot of repetition that feels completely unnecessary. Several songs just repeats themselves way too much, making you feel like you are stuck in an endless loop. "Invisible Kid" is the perfect example of this, a pretty fun song actually, but it has a length of 8 and a half minute, every line in the verses start with the title, and it goes on and on and on and on, IT NEVER ENDS! A good idea completely wasted.

And that is probably the saddest part about "St. Anger", that there is some amount of good, or at least interesting, ideas in here, once again showing that Metallica is not afraid to experiment with their music. Even if most tracks in "St. Anger" feels really strange coming from Metallica, like they do not belong at all with this band, there are still songs like "Frantic", "The Unnamed Feeling", "All Within My Hands", and even the title track have some really neat tricks that certainly works, but I feel like the anger of the band kind of ruins the quality of the craft. Hetfield does not sound as crisp as usual (in fact, he sounds really, really bad in some places), Hammett does not get any room at all to shine, and Lars... is Lars. It is perfectly obvious that this is not a band in harmony, a group that still needs some healing before being 100% again.

With all said and done though, there is one thing that I do not agree with most naysayers about "St. Anger", that it is a candidate for the "Worst metal album of all time" award. Sure, "St. Anger" is a rotten album, it is a record only a mother could love, and it is without any shadow of a doubt the worst Metallica record out there ("Lulu" not included, because it is more of a Lou Reed album), but it does at the very least have some neat ideas that might not have been given the best opportunities to shine, but they are still there to behold. This is an angry record that tries to maul everything in its path, without any real sense of direction, which makes it difficult to get a grasp on. So let us all do what Hetfield say in the title track, flush it out.

Songs worthy of recognition: Frantic, The Unnamed Feeling

Rating: 2,5/10 Sweet Ambers

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Opeth - Damnation (2003)

5 months after the release of "Deliverance", Opeth unveiled the second half of their epic double trouble pack, the Yin that would match the Yang, the twin brother that came in second place out of the mother, the... you get the point. "Damnation" is the other half of the recordings from 2002, showing off the calmer side of the band. Gone are all the harsh vocals, the distorted guitars, and the aggressive beats, all that is left is an (close to fully) acoustic ensemble that plays 70's inspired rock. You could say this album was "Heritage" before "Heritage", exposing the common Opeth fan to something different, maybe even uncomfortable.

To make this album work as an Opeth release, everything has to be nailed perfectly, and it all starts with the production. Together with the band's main man Mikael Åkerfeldt, we got help from Steven Wilson, whom we all know from Porcupine Tree, his solo project, and a bunch of other bands. Steven is the perfect man for the job in my opinion, because since he also loves 70's prog rock, he knows how to make a compelling record that would also speak to the metal crowd. Mikael and Steven is certainly a match made in progressive heaven, a duo that could make some special magic happen.

And there is certainly magic in here, some smooth, mellow magic. The band goes seamlessly from song to song in its own tempo, taking their time to develop every melody into something great. While it is all rooted into the 70's, it still has that touch of modern Opeth that keeps it from being out of touch. It actually got a lot in common with "Morningrise", except for the obvious bits that we have already discussed about.

One thing that I think "Damnation" does better than "Deliverance" is featuring Mikael Åkerfeldt and his wonderful vocals, and I guess it could be because this music fits his clean vocals extremely well, but it is also because he gets much more room to work with here. With very minimal instrumentation in play, Mikael takes over and guides us through this journey, calmly leading us to a secure place. It is a comforting voice, one that you can trust in any weather.

But as you would expect from an album like this, it does get kind of boring after a while, since all of the songs have sort of the same tempo and mood. It is certainly a record that you could fall asleep to if you listen to it in the middle of the night. However, the boredom never becomes a chore, it is not like I want to skip any track and simply give up, it is more like "this part is not very exciting, but let us see what they can offer next". The hypnotizing vocals and the fine tuned guitar playing helps in keeping your concentration levels at reasonable heights, continuing to amaze with its delicate techniques.

So yeah, "Damnation" might not be the most exciting Opeth album out there, but it is still one with several good qualities, a different experience that works perfectly as the counter part of "Deliverance". It is easy to see that those two were recorded at the same time, and they certainly make a great double feature when listened to back to back. I do find this one as the superior album, because it tries new stuff, while still having that Opeth style that we all know and love. It is a special little album that stands out in the discography, and while it still has some way up towards the highest of levels, it sits nicely as a pleasant break from the madness. Simply marvelous.

Songs worthy of recognition: Death Whispered A Lullaby, In My Time of Need, To Rid The Disease

Rating: 7,5/10 Windowpanes

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The Devin Townsend Band - Accelerated Evolution (2003)

You are all probably wondering why this album is under the name The Devin Townsend Band, and not under Devin Townsend? Well, even if "Accelerated Evolution" is technically Devin's sixth solo album, This was the first album where Devin had a dedicated band line-up. Besides from Devin, we had Brian Waddell, Mike Young, Dave Young, and Ryan Van Poederooyen (Ryan would also become permanent drummer in Devin's coming project, Devin Townsend Project). The reason Devin did this was that he wanted to create a counterpart to Strapping Young Lad. And thus was "Accelerated Evolution" created.

Musically speaking, I would say that the album mixes the playfulness of "Infinity" with the mature nature of "Terria". It is a uplifting album that explores both commercially attractive vibes with heavy metal. I definitely like where it is heading towards, especially since the memorability factor is higher compared to both "Terria" and Strapping Young Lad's latest self-titled release. And even if some of the tracks balances on the thread between rock and pop, it is still a pretty joyful listening session for metal freaks.

The best prof of the previous statement is the opener "Depth Charge". With an impressive determination and drive, Devin and the gang plows through with speed, epicness and a sound that is as hard as it can be without being completely metal. Definitely my favorite track from the album. The rest of the album never reach the same heavy level (although "Random Analysis" is fairly close), but that does not mean there is nothing more to appreciate with "Accelerated Evolution". Take an extra listen to the soft rock song "Traveller" and the Blink-182 inspired "Slow Me Down", two songs that will surely put a smile on that grim face of yours. Also take a look at the space oriented "Suicide" that may be the most sad song in the album, but it has some strong points like the frenetic guitar work and the mood settings. Then we also have the semi-instrumental track "Away" that may be too long for its own good, but still brings a sense of delight to the soul with its cool and ambient sound.

The only real problem with "Accelerated Evolution" is that it may scare some of the more heavier metal fans away. There are no crazy solos nor not many times where Devin screams his lungs out, which is a proof that Devin has succeeded with his plan. He wanted to create a band that was the complete opposite to Strapping Young Lad, and The Devin Townsend Band is just what it was supposed to be.

"Accelerated Evolution" is a very chill album that should not appeal to the more hardcore metal fans, but if you enjoyed "Terria" and even "Infinity", then I would suggest that you would give this album a chance. It is not the overall strongest album in the Devin Townsend catalog, but just like any other album by the Canadian, it is one of a kind.

Songs worthy of recognition: Depth Charge, Suicide, Slow Me Down

Rating: 8/10 Travellers

Strapping Young Lad - S/T (2003)

It is pretty strange to believe it, but the follow up to Strapping Young Lad's critically acclaimed "City" came six years after "City"'s release. The band was placed on hiatus by Devin between 1999 and 2002 so that he could focus on his solo career, and one of the few reasons that made him get back to SYL was because he had "creative anger" as his motivation after the 9/11 attacks in 2001. So SYL was back in action and "Strapping Young Lad" would become the first album by the band where all the members was active in the song writing process.

So has the years changed SYL any significantly? Actually no, the heaviness and anger is still a big part of SYL's music, but it is more of a controlled anger instead of this bat shit crazy anger where Devin says fuck every three words. Now that I think of it, Devin only says fucking 5 times throughout this album. Anyway, the music may be more down to earth (or mature), but I miss that extra level of craziness that "City" had. Sure, some parts in this albums are pure WTF moments (like in the end of "Dirt Pride" where Devin screams "Wash my fucking balls"), but it is not enough to make this album stand out. Not so good when the album is only 39 minutes long.

There are not many songs that catches my attention in "Strapping Young Lad", but two songs are definitely interesting enough for me to notice. The first one is the bone crushing "Relentless". It is the only song on "Strapping Young Lad" that would fit nicely in "City" with its heaviness, speed, and epic chorus. The other song is "Force Fed", that impresses with an excellent mix of epic musical quality and doom-like groove. But I think it would have been better if it was slightly shorter. We also have songs like "Rape Song", "Aftermath", and "Dirt Pride" that may not impress me completely, but still satisfies my urge of great SYL metal.

Despite the fact that the quality is decently high, I still feel that "Strapping Young Lad" needs a personality. It is overall a slightly bland album for a SYL album. I mean, "Heavy As A Really Heavy Thing" had its silliness and "City" had speed and heaviness. What does "Strapping Young Lad" have? The answer is nothing in particular. The band does what they are good at, but nothing more.

It is without a doubt that I say that "Strapping Young Lad" is a great album, but it could have been even better with something that personified the album. There is a good couple of songs in the album, but nothing overly impressive. However, it is still a good album with the fact that the band was inactive for three years. But it is not enough to make me wash the band's fucking balls.

Songs worthy of recognition: Force Fed, Relentless, Aftermath

Rating: 7/10 Consequences

Iron Maiden - Dance of Death (2003)

Seeing Iron Maiden's mascot normally is horrifying itself, but on Maiden's 13th album, Eddie is posing as death himself together with several half naked persons with disturbing masks (and a white hell dog). This is clearly the most disturbing Maiden cover up to date, but luckily it does not show how the sound of the album will be. Yes, "Dance of Death" is not a disturbing experience, it is instead a continuation of the sound that the band showed in the previous release "Brave New World".

The most interesting parts with this album is actually that this album contains the only song where drummer Nicko McBrain has songwriting credit ("New Frontier") and Maiden's first acoustic song ("Journeyman"). "Journeyman" is nothing special, but I like the modern style that "New Frontier" has together with the soft chorus that is easily enjoyable.

The album starts otherwise in a powerful way with the two singles "Wildest Dreams" and "Rainmaker". I can still remember the music video of "Wildest Dreams" where a animated Bruce Dickinson races through the pits of hell and into Eddie's mouth. Definitely one of my favourite music videos of all time. The song itself is a perfect single with its infecting chorus and straight forward attitude, but it does not offer something special to make it fully stand out. "Rainmaker" however does have that little extra something. It may be the shortest song in the album, but the epicness is still great and the sing a long factor is incredibly high. And let us not forget that bitching solo that is just Maiden out to the fingertips.

The epicness continues in "No More Lies", and even though the chorus can be somewhat repetetive, the song still holds a strong power and musicality that is out of this world. The epicness reaches its peak in the title track where it takes you to a camp fire where everyone is dancing round for the reaper. This track definitely holds the same epic standards as "Seventh Son of A Seventh Son" and "Rime of The Ancient Mariner", but it is the speed in the second half that makes it truly stand out.

The last song that stands out is the highly praised "Paschendale". I do not think that "Paschendale" is the strongest piece in the album, but I can see why this song has been so praised with its groovy rhythm and effective right, right, left combination that easily knocks you down. I also think that "Paschendale" represents the album well. "Dance of Death" is powerful, but it still has that epic vein that just makes it pop.

The one weakness with "Dance of Death" is that it is a pretty long album (over one hour) which would be a disadvantage for listeners with short free time. But the biggest weakness is the track "Age of Innocence". It has the Maiden musicality, but it is more or less a pop or soft rock song. That chorus is so cheesy that it is a Packers fan.

Just like "Brave New World", "Dance of Death" shows the best from Maiden's fast and progressive side. The reason why I have rated this album higher is that the overall song standard is higher and that the band found a special sound that was kept through the whole album. The album lacks something really special to make it a masterpiece, but I am sure that the grim reaper is pretty happy that Iron Maiden did such a fine album with him as the main character.

Songs worthy of recognition: Dance of Death, No More Lies, Paschendale, Rainmaker

Rating: 8,5/10 Journeymen

Dream Theater - Train of Thought (2003)

I always say that a band can never be legendary without expanding their horizons and not trying to evolve their music, something Dream Theater really did not try until this moment. "Train of Thought" is the bands seventh full-length release and is probably one of the most controversial releases Dream Theater has ever made since it is an album that is much darker and heavier than its predecessors. The band itself explained that they wanted to be exposed to another kind of metal fans and expanding their music further into the music universe. But did that mean that they left behind all the characteristics of what made them so great and abandoned their old fans? Well, not entirely but I would understand if a fan of the bands earlier works would think twice before listening to this album.

As stated before, this album is very much different from the rest of the albums in the Dream Theater catalog. We still got a lot of long, epic songs but most of the musicality is gone and is replaced by true strength powered by heavy riffs and a fast tempo. The regular Dream Theater sound is still there even though it is taking less space than usual.

The opener of "Train of Thought" is "As I Am", a very weird song even for Dream Theater.A heavy mid-tempo riff goes into a fast and groovy verse just to fall back to the mid-tempo sludge in the chorus. It takes some time to appreciate the song but it stands very clear that "As I Am" is one of the weakest opener in any Dream Theater album to date (competing with "New Millenium" from "Falling Into Infinity"). So not a great start for the heavier Dream Theater but the band shapes up instantly in "This Dying Soul" A great heavy and progressive song that is both exciting and groovy. But the most interesting part of this song is around 7:15. Is it just me or does that part sound like the Metallica song "Blackened"? You may say rip-off, I say that it was awesome.

The third song is "Endless Sacrifice", a great emotional track that gives me shivers every time that chorus is played. An to top it off it has a fast solo that shows of Petrucci's shredding abilities. Probably the song that showed the best mix between the early and the new Dream Theater. That good mix continues onto the next track, "Honor Thy Father". This track may not be as exciting and thrilling as "Endless Sacrifice" but it is still a groovy and heavy song that shows that the band is in an element they can control.

Now there is only one useless song on "Train of Thought" and, not surprisingly, it is the shortest song. "Vacant" is a slow and meaningless ballad that is just a filler. Actually, I think the only reason that "Vacant" is on here is to make this seventh album seven songs long. Fortunately, it is a small part of this album with its short playing time (2:58, almost five minutes shorter than the second shortest song). The last two songs on this album, "Stream of Consciousness" and "In The Name of God", are pretty pale against the rest of the songs on this album. Sure, they are good songs but they have their weaknesses. "Stream of Consciousness" is over ten minutes long, a little too long for a instrumental, and "In The Name of God" is epic and so but I do not think the solo is as good as it could have been. Such a shame for such a good track.

Controversial or not, I absolutely love this album. The fact that the band has baked in all these heavy elements into six tracks (plus one without any heaviness) is not only brilliant but a perfect way for the band to expand their music. "Train of Thought" is without a doubt the most unique album the band has made so far into their careers. But the new influences have its price. The lyrics and the settings are not as strong as in previous releases. Still, I find "Train of Thought" appealing and amusing. An album that any metal fan, progressive and heavy, should take a shoot at.

Songs Worthy of Recognition: This Dying Soul, Endless Sacrifice, Honor Thy Father

Rating: 8,5/10 Streams of Consciousness

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