Matt says: "Reviews long enough that you can actually learn something, but short enough that you can read while taking a dump. By the way, why the fuck do you have your computer in the bathroom?"
The Dillinger Escape Plan - Option Paralysis
(Party Smasher, Inc.)Of the words that repeatedly come up in attempts to enthusiastically describe the sound and style of The Dillinger Escape Plan (heavy, gnarly, fast, holy shit, what the fuck, wow et cetera ad infinitum), interesting is the only one that consistently does. Interesting is a pretty loaded word, though. It could be a noncommittal disguise for hating the fuck out of something or it could be uttered in reverence of sheer ass-kickery. Yet for a band that has covered Aphex Twin, Billy Idol and Justin Timberlake - and with gusto - interesting fits.
'Option Paralysis' combines the ferocity of 'Calculating Infinity' with the tunefulness of 'Miss Machine' while maintaining Dillinger's signature technical dominance. Despite being the longest release yet from the band, it is also the most in your face, severe assjacking they have unleashed. The longer ambient and glitch style interludes of 'Ire Works' are notably absent, but Ben Weinman's classic programming and electronics still play a significant (and complicated) role. Tracks like "Farewell, Mona Lisa" and "I Wouldn't if You Didn't" push familiar Dillinger sounds far beyond their disintegration point, and the album as a whole consistently hits so hard it encroaches on discontinuity.
Finally, the crowning achievement of the album is "Widower", a six-minute piano ballad which highlights the amazing vocal range of Greg Puciatto and the composition savvy of the group as a whole. As a piece of music, there is something that fans of any genre will find attractive. Since Dillinger has already broken the sound and speed barriers of music they have set their sights on breaking down the barriers that separate music fans, and 'Option Paralysis' is one hell of an opening argument. It's not genre-defying, it's genre-obliterating.
(Indie Recordings)
Metal is as notable for its stubborn consistencies as it is for its taboo extremism. Most genres move toward stagnation unnoticed by fans for the simple reason that they kick ass. If you've heard Mayhem, Napalm Death, Dimmu Borgir, Neurosis, Sleep, Slayer and Iron Maiden you've covered about all the ground that metal has to offer. That's not a slam, though. There can never be enough death metal albums and fans continue to line up for Maiden shows thirty years into their career. Why? Because it all kicks so much ass.
Still, when something truly revolutionary appears out of the molten void of the metal unknown it can come as quite a shock. 'Blackjazz' is that shock, that uncertainty about whether one should headbang like a motherfucker or stare at the speakers in bewilderment. Picture the most brutal drums and evil goblin vocals mashed up with thick analog synths and... wait for it... saxophone. Mixing jazz and metal, black metal at that, seems plausible but still sounds like the punch line to some stupid musical joke. Norway's Shining not only seamlessly integrate the two, they do it with virtuosity and originality.
For the short course, listen to "Fisheye". To have your skull completely pealed back, check out "HEALTER SKELTER". It's instantly apparent that Shining have carefully studied their Necronomicon and channeled the ghost of John Coltrane. So many bands and albums and bullshit seem to be the next evolution of metal, but for once it can be said that something actually is that evolution - 'Blackjazz'.
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