Quote:
Originally Posted by noname219
edit : do you consider giving a rating for each review ?
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Not really, no. I feel like ratings either seem redundant (such as with Allmusic, where everything is a 3-4 out of 5) or inaccurate to the point of being either unjust (Based on Wikipedia, Piero Scaruffi) or further useless (Mark Prindle). Perhaps in the future I will, I still have at least 63 albums after this one.
NOTE: This entire review is a rewrite because my computer crashed on me after letting it sit unposted for several minutes.
Day 5: Hypnotize by System of a Down (Album Request: CJ101)
System of a Down is an Alt. Metal band that is often compared to
Tool. Both play alt. metal with a heavy dose of experimentation. Both became popular in the mid-late 90s and have at least one triple platinum album. Both are often called "overrated" or "pretentious", likely because they don't play arena rock. And most importantly, both are bands I only know from Guitar Hero/Rock Band songs. I'm out of it I know.
Also, these guys come from the same place as the Kardashians, but have an entirely different market and appeal (no breasts on these guys).
First song is almost exactly what I expected based on Rock Band songs, and that continues for the next few songs. There's a formula for the majority of the songs: Speed metal, soft section, in-between, back to speed metal. Vary as desired, rinse and repeat. Obviously, this isn't so limited as to every song sounding the same, but it does add a level of predictability. I've already given up on understanding the lyrics.
The guitar is often boring but shows some improvement when experimentation is used. The vocalist I swear is often attempting to sing for a novelty act. Songs like
Kill Rock & Roll feature some bizarre singing styles, and oftentimes the lyrics appear as juvenile humor, especially in songs like
Vicinity of Obscenity (Banana Terracotta Pie? What the hell is tha- OH I GET IT it's one of those "food innuendo" songs. Because we all know what a banana looks like but what the heck is a terracotta pie? Quick Google search shows me it's... a ceramic? Who eats ceramic pie? Should've said panna cotta pie except nobody really makes that either).
She's Like Heroin seems to be about drug-addicted hookers and features both humorous aspects of earlier songs. And if you can't tell, I can sort of understand the lyrics now.
Lonely Day MUST be tongue-in-cheek, I can't take any song that says "most loneliest" seriously.
I originally finished around 10:37 A.M. and decided to give it an extra skimover at 12:50. I gathered any further thoughts.
-Attack vaguely reminds me of
Arab on Radar. That band sucks.
-The guitar is a bit better then I gave it credit for. But the occasional experimental bits still reign over the speed metal sections.
-Vocals are a mixture of manic shouts, melodic singing and occasional pure bizarrity, like in songs like
She's Like Heroin
I can't conclude much about this album. It's not really my type of metal but if you like whatever this can be classified as then I'd say it's a pretty fine album in-and-out. It's not what I think of as experimental metal (I think of
Mr. Bungle or
Dog Fashion Disco) but I wouldn't call it nu-metal (it deserves better than the same tag as
Limp Bizkit). Whatever you tag it is, give it a try and maybe you'll like it. No matter your opinion, it's still better than Kim Kardashian.
Also, as a note, if you're a fan of this band I recommend you check out
Psychostick (whom EVERYONE on this damn site should know at this point). Stylistically they're quite different but I still think there's a degree of cross appeal. Compare
Prozak Milkshake to
Lonely Day. That's all I have for a comparison actually.