Collapse & Sever [Import]

Collapse & Sever [Import]

Editorial Reviews
Product Description
Full length debut album from electro-pop/EBM outfit featuring members of Claire Voyant & Cut.Rate.Box. Cryonica. 2004.

Tracks:

A0001
Understanding in a Car
Concealer
Autobiography of a Nation
Hole in the World
Cross Out the Eyes
Paris in Flames
I Am the Killer
Standing on the Edge of Summer
Wind-Up
How Long Is the Night?
I1100

Album Description

With their latest release “Full Collapse,” Thursday have created a sound that is unparalleled and unequivocally their own. Although still a young band, they write with the sincerity and insight of a band twice their age. Their music is a cathartic whirlwind of rhythmic melodies and heart stopping time changes that are unified amongst lulling vocal harmonies and besieging wails. Thursday can mesmerize their audiences in a way no other band in recent memory has been able to do.

Customer Reviews:

Good.......2007-02-08

This album is great! The reason I only gave it four stars is because a lot of the songs have the same tempo and it begins to all melt together and wear on you.

It's not as good as War All The Time. For a first time listener I would recommend that to them first.

Full Collapse was precursor.........2007-01-25

Back when I was in 8 grade I heard of this band thursday from some ppl and didn't think too much of it as I was more into things I find terrible now (I.e. blink 182 and other such things).

Well, skip to 9th grade, keep in mind im now a softmore in college.. I entered a band with some friend in a nearby town and they listened to different music than me. Modest mouse had their latest album "moon and antarctica" at that time and they threw in this strange sounding record named Full Collapse by Thursday. I wondered about the band and soon burnt a copy of it and it quickly became my favorite record and band.

To this day (I have now bought all their records to support) it remains my favorite Thursday record, if not my favorite overall. I think the only album that comes close in my opinion as far as listening for me would be ACBTLD (which is an amazing record as well, I don't care so much for WATT/ Though when it came out I thought it to be amazing.)

The album is still frequently found in many a cd player around the country and guys in Thursday are good ppl, if you ever get have a decent conversation with them it really comes through. Last May I got lucky and spoke with them for a bit and they're same good guys and I think they've earned my ultimate respect over the years really. Take what you will.

an album that epitimizes the genre.......2006-12-19

I've owned this album for many years, it was my favorite album in high school(next to Second Stage Turbine by CoCa). I've seen them live about eight times, or so. Why review it now over four years later, well it's just that time. This album is heavily influenced by the post-hardcore of At the Drive in, and Fugazi, as well as hints of The Cure and Joy Division. This is something completely different. It's not as well produced as their last two, but Full Collapse is the most emotional and the most influential (over abundance of rip-offs though). How Long is the Night, the albums conclusion is worth the price alone.

Maybe I'm in the wrong age group...........2006-12-14

I definitely understand why this band is classified as emo. This CD helped me solidify the impression I had that I don't care for emo.

The album is not bad and the band is tight enough for a young band, but the issue I have with emo and with this album in particular, is it's not really anything. It's not hardcore, it's not really melodic....it's sort of stuck in the middle of both but not quite reaching either one.

Maybe I'm not the target audience for emo or this band....I get that, that's ok. I can't stop thinking Thursday seem like they're trying desperately to sound like Fugazi and never really getting there. And that's the rub of it I guess....with bands like Thursday and She Wants Revenge...they appear to be reaching for the roots of alternative/hardcore or newwave music but for someone who knows what the real thing sounds like, they're a poor imitation. The sound is immature and lacks the urgency and edge that the original bands had at the time.

I have a friend with a 14 year old son who asked me to burn him a copy of this CD. I think I'll just be giving it to him and calling it done.

Full Collapse.......2006-11-28

"Full Collapse" was the first Thursday CD I ever bought after being introduced to the band by a friend 3 years ago. Although it's not as recent as WATT or ACBTLD, Full Collapse is easily the best CD Thursday has made to date. This is the CD that made me fall in love with this band and it is the album I continue to listen to to this day. If you like other Thursday stuff, you'll love Full Collapse. The words used are so meaningful and definately worth every penny you pay. Also, the boys put on an AMAZING live show so if you like the music I'd definately recommend going to see them in concert. The interaction with the crowd and the energy is great.

Average customer rating:

As I lay dying is Metalcore
As I Lay Dying: Frail Words Collapse
DAVID ALLISONS REVIEW
Perfect.
Sweet

Frail Words Collapse
As I Lay Dying
Manufacturer: Metal Blade
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Shadows Are Security
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The Oncoming Storm
Suicide Notes & Butterfly Kisses
A Long March: The First Recordings

ASIN: B00009RG5C
Release Date: 2003-07-01

Tracks:

94 Hours
Falling Upon Deaf Ears
Forever
Collision
Distance Is Darkness
Behind Me Lies Another Fallen Soldier
Undefined
A Thousand Steps
The Beginning
Song 10
The Pain of Separation
Elegy

Customer Reviews:

As I lay dying is Metalcore.......2007-04-10

Basically as I lay dying laid out the blueprint for metalcore with the swirling melodic guitar riffs and the timely palm mute chugs which arent over done.
Favorite songs are as follows
Collision - insane hooks, short and sweet
Elegy - Nice high pitch riffs mixed in with the thumping drums
Forever - excellent riffing again with a brilliantly timed melodic
background chorus.
94 hours - once again nice riffing

All the songs in this album have an energetic feel with raw power and melody.
Great album

As I Lay Dying: Frail Words Collapse.......2007-01-22

The songs rock my brain. All the tracks were awsome. So Heavy!

DAVID ALLISONS REVIEW.......2006-12-11

I love this band and the cd.I myself love bands that scream its like im addected to it but they half to be christen.This band remindes me of the band STILL REMAINS.My dads a paster and i com from a christen backround.But if your somewone like me you will love it.This band gives you the Heavey Metal feeling.Its great to get you pumped before an event.I HIGHLEY RECOMEND THIS BAND!!!!!!!!!!

Perfect........2006-08-20

This is their best album ever. nothing comes close to it. Every song is perfect.

Sweet.......2006-07-31

One of my favorite bands of all time. This album is amazing. Full of energy, brutallity, and thought filled lyrics. The first mainstream album by one of the most recognized bands in metal today As I Lay Dying. This is the album that really got them were they are today. Get it!! Its and amazing album!!

Average customer rating:

Awesome, I really enjoyed this album
A transitional album?

Remember the Night Parties
Oxford Collapse
Manufacturer: Sub Pop
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Boys and Girls in America
Yellow House
We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
Sound of Silver
Return to Cookie Mountain (with Bonus Tracks)

ASIN: B000HT38RG
Release Date: 2006-10-10

Tracks:

He'll Paint While We Play
Please Visit Your National Parks
Loser City
For The Khakis And The Sweatshirts
Return Of / Burno
Lady Lawyers
Let's Vanish
Kenny Can't Afford It
Molasses
Forgot To Write
In Your Volcano

Amazon.com

Hectic without being fast, Oxford Collapse's third album further enshrines the Brooklyn band's ramshackle ethos, favoring tweaked time signatures and jangly guitars over anything intentionally linear. Witness the crumbling percussion midway in "Return of / Burno," how it pulls the floor from the song, sending Michael Pace's guitar and Adam Rizer's bass into a call-and-response of feedback and melody restatements while the drums gradually rebuild the tune. It's a heart thing, Dan Fetherston's drums: they pump the blood on these 11 songs evenly and then with an arrhythmia, as if Pavement found their way to Brooklyn via Athens, Georgia. That's a stellar route, by the way, to a fine album. --Andrew Bartlett

Album Description

Taking cues from post-punk pioneers and genre-transcending bands like The Embarrassment, Mission Of Burma, or fIREHOSE, Oxford Collapse construct melodic art-pop packed full of chiming guitars and shout-along vocals. This CD is both restless/nervous and heartfelt, with time signatures that are as urgent as they are unpredictable. This is their Sub Pop debut after releasing two full-lengths and a handful of singles and EPs.

Customer Reviews:

Awesome, I really enjoyed this album.......2007-03-21

Tracks like 'please Visit Your National Parks' and 'Let's Vanish' are to me standout tracks the rest have their own merits but aren't as pleasing. I discovered this one on a SXSW artist mega sample and I'm so happy I did. Refreshing would be an understatement.

A transitional album?.......2007-01-26

Oxford Collapse's SubPop debut, and their third full-length CD, continues the frenetic, jittery delivery of their earlier records. It is not as drastic a departure from their previous work as blurbs assert. The first song shows the trio's able-- finally-- to quiet down and wander down calmer paths for rewarding beauty. But, most of these tunes continue in the college radio style of the 80s. I like Wire, The Fall, Mission of Burma, and The Minutemen. But I heard all of these bands when they appeared back then. The challenge for new bands influenced by old sounds is to reinterpret them and make them fresh. Oxford Collapse is getting there. Not there yet, but for the first time on record, the trio sounds as if they are applying more inventive studio touches and instrumental passages that seek to ground the band rather than chase their fragile, brittle sound as it leaps ahead of their grasp. It's fast music, and such a speed is best appreciated when you have a counter-force so you can measure the difference between velocity and steadiness. This tension is beginning to be explored on this album.

It's not as much of a departure from their earlier albums as the PR blurbs may proclaim. The style recalls for me the hyperactive jitters of The Feelies, XTC, and Volcano Suns as well as the bands mentioned above. The danger of this bouncy style is that it becomes, well, stylized quickly. Great in small lengths and brief songs, tiring and perhaps annoying over an album or two.

Oxford Collapse are moving in the right direction, aware of their ability to re-create and enjoy this stage of alt-rock, but they are also paying attention to production and arrangements that enrich the texture of their songs. This is needed to balance the higher-pitched vocals and frantic playing, and if the band wishes to leave its own distinctive mark on the music scene, this is an approach that should open up more daring records in their future on, I hope, SubPop. So, a transition towards originality?

Average customer rating:

The Screaming of the new lead singer is annoying
Woww...nice Big difference

Collapse
Across Five Aprils
Manufacturer: Indianola Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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A Tragedy in Progress
Living in the Moment
Holding a Wolf by the Ears
Crisis
Waking Giants

ASIN: B000FWHVVE
Release Date: 2006-07-11

Tracks:

Tallahassee's For Hookers
Let's Whisper
I Will Stop The Rain
You're Not Alone
Sunnyland
With These Hands
Bring Me Their Head
Miss Mistress
Shot Down With Arrows
New Management

Album Description

Chattanooga Tennessee's finest have been taking the stage and cranking out hits since early 2001 with their now patented "Scenic City Hardcore" sound. After several self released records and self booked tours; ACROSS FIVE APRILS teamed up with Indianola Records to release their now seminal full length, A Tragedy in Progress in 2003. This record would launch the band's career as a known national act and went on to become Indianola's second best selling record to date. Since then, ACROSS FIVE APRILS has released the MCD Living in the Moment to hold their fans over as well as a recent reissue of A Tragedy in Progress with added live songs and video footage. Now, with another full year of touring already begun, including stints in Europe, ACROSS FIVE APRILS is ready to unveil their long awaited new full length: Collapse, to the fans that have waited so long.

Customer Reviews:

The Screaming of the new lead singer is annoying.......2006-08-06

the singer sounds like atreyu, but the band as a whole is fairly good, they still have their shoutout and additional screaming reminiscient of their 2003 album a tragedy in progress. Their 2004 ep was a huge step in the right direction they amped up the sound quality and focused more on nice singing than the screaming. I thoroughly enjoyed that ep but, to my dissapointment their new album does not have the singer from their 2004 ep. So i think that their 2003 album and their 2004 ep remain the best of their indy careers. The album is good but the singer needs to cut down on his screaming as it does not float my boat.

Woww...nice Big difference.......2006-07-11

Well, I have been a big fan of A5A through lineup changes and now three cds. I have to say this is a big direction change for the guys and I dont hate it at all. It still has the nice groove type and heavy break downs as the previous cds. The lyrics and melodies are allllll so catchy. The only reason why I didnt give it a five is because I needed atleast two more songs. I think the stand out tracks are "Sunny Land" and "I will stop the rain". The others are great but those two have really good radio appeal. My favorite track is " With These Hands" just how the epic song starts and the melodies that reign down just superfantabulous.

Definately go out and get this cd or order it from amazon you wont be disappointed.

Average customer rating:

an important item in their catalog
don't listen to the haters!
Don't listen...to these reviews
Had a shot at the big time and choked
a thing that i would gladly keep

Do the Collapse
Guided by Voices
Manufacturer: Tvt
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Isolation Drills
Bee Thousand
Vampire on Titus
Propeller
Hold on Hope

ASIN: B00000JLI5
Release Date: 1999-08-03

Tracks:

Teenage FBI
Zoo Pie
Things I Will Keep
Hold On Hope
In Stitches
Dragons Awake!
Surgical Focus
Optical Hopscotch
Mushroom Art
Much Better Mr. Buckles
Wormhole
Strumpet Eye
Liquid Indian
Wrecking Now
Picture Me Big Time
An Unmarketed Product

Amazon.com

Any doubts about Ric Ocasek producing Guided by Voices' latest record are swiftly put to rest within the first few seconds of "Teenage FBI," the brilliant opening track on Do the Collapse. As new-wavish keyboards snake around Robert Pollard's nasal vocal delivery it's apparent that GBV have always been, among many other things, a great new-wave band and that Ocasek, the one-time crown prince of new-wave techno geeks, is a natural fit. Do the Collapse is GBV's most polished effort yet, although the slick production doesn't sabotage GBV's lo-fi, garage aesthetics. The songs virtually leap out at the listener with typical spontaneity and the hooks still come early and often. This time out Pollard has surrounded himself with a loose aggregate of musicians including the Breeders' Jim Macpherson on drums and guitarist Doug Gillard, a holdover from 1997's Mag Earwhig! The lineup does an exceptional job fusing all of their disparate influences with a consistency not seen on previous GBV releases. Every song here is a gem; there are echoes of Syd Barrett on "Dragons Awake" and "Wormhole," the Who (circa A Quick One) are recalled on "Much Better Mr. Buckles" and "An Unmarketed Product," and the record's most astounding track, "Liquid Indian," finds GBV channeling a myriad of unlikely '70s sources and mingling them with their own sensibilities to create something all their own. The beauty of Do the Collapse is GBV's ability to seamlessly stitch together the best of '60s British garage pop, '70s prog-rock, '80s new wave, and '90s indie rock to create their own personal history of rock & roll. --Paul Ducey

Customer Reviews:

an important item in their catalog.......2007-02-10

This cd - their first attempt at being "produced" - gets knocked by a lot of their early, purist, fans. But unjustly. Like all GBV releases it contains some great songs and some that may not hit you too hard.
Teenage FBI, Zoo Pie, Things I Will Keep, Hold On Hope, and Surgical Focus are all great songs by any measure: lyrics, melodies, inventive chord changes, arrangements, band interaction. Excellent Pollard songs. Songs that could have (should have) gotten radio play.
Mushroom Art, Much Better Mr. Buckles, and Liquid Indian all certainly hold up to repeated listenings.
I understand and appreciate the reverence for Bee Thousand, Vampire On Titus, etc. But GBV phase two (featuring guitarist Doug Gillard who became a key player for the rest of GBV's run) put out several great cds.
This cd isn't a full picture of what GBV recordings were about - there are none of the incomplete song fragments that Pollard often throws in, none of the lo-fi recording quality found on a lot of their releases, and none of the disconnected abrupt stitched together changes they sometimes use. This cd is more "produced" and the songs are all "finished" and arranged. Not a necessarily a bad thing.
I also highly recommend Universal Truths and Cycles - The best cd of GBV phase two .... probably (I know I'm out on a limb here) the best cd of their whole career. Universal Truths and Cycles is the complete GBV picture: arranged songs/fragments, lo-fi/hi-fi, crystal clear/obscure, etc.

don't listen to the haters!.......2006-07-23

how could any album with teenage FBI, things i will keep, surgical focus, liquid indian, mushroom art and an unmarketable product suck? answer: it can't and it doesn't. yes, ric ocesek produced it and it is slick and pollard tried his hand at writing a hit song (the power ballad hold on hope), this is a really good album. forget alien lanes and listen with new ears. for my money, this is the third best GbV album (after bee thousand and alien lanes.) unduly critized by so-called fans. your venom probably cost pollard his only chance at actually making some real money. all the joy he brought to the world and this is how he was thanked...by his own people. shame on you all. your true colors came out in 2000. so what did you move on to, anyway? built to spill or modest mouse?

ignore most of these reviews and enjoy!

Don't listen...to these reviews.......2005-12-08

Lot of bad-mouthing going on here. I'd say most of these people weren't truly fans of the band. Either you get Guided By Voices or you don't. They have some mp3's of their's here,listen and judge for yourself. As for me...I WORSHIP AT THE ALTER OF ROBERT POLLARD. GBV was the best thing to happen to rock music in God knows how long. We miss you already...

Had a shot at the big time and choked.......2005-07-09

"Do the Collapse" is not quite as insufferable as a lot of hardcore GBV fans think, but it's still pretty bad.

Professional production is not the problem-- "Earthquake Glue," "Isolation Drills," and parts of "Mag Earwhig!" are just as elaborately produced, but those albums are packed with great songs. "Do the Collapse" sounds great, but it piles on one turgid, tuneless, meandering song after another. And as another reviewer pointed out, starting an album with two of its worst tracks is a huge handicap that "Do the Collapse" does not need. After that clumsy start, it never builds up any momentum despite stumbling onto a decent melody once every few tracks.

Robert Pollard had already paid his dues and proven his songwriting genius many times over; his band deserved the publicity and success that major label money can help achieve. It's frustrating that he blew that chance with such a weak album. (Plus, the moronic "Liquid Indian" broke his streak of great songs with "Indian" in the title. Sad!)

The greatest hits album "Human Amusements at Hourly Rates" cherry picks the best songs from "DTC" ("Things I Will Keep" and "Surgical Focus" are undeniably great), plus it features the vastly superior demo version of "Teenage FBI" instead of the dreadful album version. Stick with that unless you're a big Guided by Voices fan; nothing else here really needs to be heard.

(Also, the "Hold on Hope" EP is a good buy-- most of the solid material from the "Collapse" sessions seems to have ended up on that EP instead of the album itself. Why terrible songs like "Optical Hopscotch" and "In Stitches" saw the light of day instead of "Tropical Robots" and "A Crick Uphill" is a mystery for the ages. See my review of the EP for a suggested alternate "Do the Collapse" tracklist.)

a thing that i would gladly keep.......2005-06-19

Folks who say that this puppy has too much filler, probably hasn't listened to the album in the right mood. This is very much a spring album. The general positive attitude can be easily seen in most if not all of the songs. First of all, "Teenage FBI" is not a bad song! maybe those of you who think that the lo fi years were truer to the indie aesthetic thought that this was the ultimate sellout. Not (entirely) true. The song itself is wonderfully poppy, and it really should have been a hit. "Zoo Pie" is a B-, meaning it's OK but I could do without it. "Things I Will Keep" and "Hold On Hope" rank among my favorite GBV tracks of all time, anthemic without being overbearing (the former) and just plain gorgeous (the latter and the solo in the former) "In Stitches" and "Dragons Awake" are simply put underappreciated highlights. "Surgical Focus" and the four (or is it five) which follow, though not the choice album tracks, do have some parts which really are great, especially the chorus of "Optical Hopscotch" and the basic message of "Wormhole" "Liquid Indian" is another song that is also really underrated. The last three, unfortunately, do sorta qualify as filler, but usually you're in such a good mood that you hardly notice. Although not exactly perfect, this album really deserves more credit than it has been given.

Average customer rating:

The start of something great
Meshuggah back when they resembled Metallica with a twist of technicality
Not as far-removed as many people claim.
Contradictions Collapse!
Best Out Of The Worst

Contradictions Collapse/None
Meshuggah
Manufacturer: Nuclear Blast Americ
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Destroy Erase Improve
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True Human Design
I
Rare Trax

ASIN: B000007U9I
Release Date: 1999-06-08

Tracks:

Contradictions Collapse: Paralyzing Ignorance
Contradictions Collapse: Erroneous Manipulation
Contradictions Collapse: Abnegating Cecity
Contradictions Collapse: Internal Evidence
Contradictions Collapse: Qualms Of Reality
Contradictions Collapse: We'll Never See The Day
Contradictions Collapse: Greed
Contradictions Collapse: Choirs Of Devastation
Contradictions Collapse: Cadeverous Mastication
None: Humiliative
None: Sickening
None: Ritual
None: Gods Of Rapture

Album Description

Reissue of the metal band's 1991 debut album with all four cuts from their 1994 EP 'None' added as bonus tracks, 'Humiliative', 'Sickening', 'Ritual' and 'Gods Of Rapture'. 13 tracks total. Also features the original cover art of both releases. 1999 release.

Customer Reviews:

The start of something great.......2007-01-05

Even without looking at the track listing, it's obvious that "Contradictions Collapse" ends after the ninth track of this C.D. (a 1999 reissue of Meshuggah's first two official releases). The remaining four songs on the disc, which were taken from Meshuggah's 1994 EP, "None," feature matured songwriting from Meshuggah. These songs are more innovative and unique, and aren't as predictable as the nine tracks which preceded them. "None" is highlighted by Thomas Haake's first use of impeccable polyrhythms, tight, technical guitar playing, complex song structures, bigger and better production, and deeper vocals from Jens.

But even though "None" is far superior, "Contradictions Collapse"(recorded in 1991) is definitely not without charm. These songs rock hard, forcefully, and directly, and are ripe with hooky, abrasive, grinding riffs (which were obviously influenced by thrash groups like Metallica and early Pantera), start-stop rhythms, breakneck tempo changes, raw, pounding snare drums, guitar solos, Jens' young, hardcore-ish vocals (high pitched barks and even a few growls), and memorably catchy call-and-response shouts in the choruses. And, surprisingly, a couple spots of clean or acoustic guitar even sprout up, and supply a great, melodic contrast to the fast, heavy parts (something that would become rare on later Meshuggah albums). The second and third tracks, "Erroneous Manipulation" and "Abnegating Cecity," augment pounding, churning guitars with fast double bass drumming. Other highlights include "Internal Evidence," which is highlighted by a funky, slapped guitar line and a skipping beat, the stutter-stepping riffs and rapid fire drums on "Qualms Of Reality," and "Choirs Of Devastation," which opens with some of the aforementioned soft strumming before the song morphs into punching riffs, thumping drums, and eerie, spoken word vocals.

"Contradictions Collapse/None" is rather long (almost 80 minutes), but that just means there's more here to love. This release is an essential purchase if you consider yourself a Meshuggah fan. It gives a great background history for this great band (it really shows you how they have evolved and improved over time), and it's a convenient re-release of two albums that would otherwise be almost impossible to find today.

Meshuggah back when they resembled Metallica with a twist of technicality.......2006-07-07

If you have heard this album and then listened to Destroy Erase Emprove, then you already know there was a big jump there musically. Contradictions Collapse is a great Technical Thrash album. Not anything like what Meshuggah puts out today. Well, maybe with the exception of the tone of the guitar solos. Anyway, this album sounds alot like Metallica with Anthrax's back up vocal yells...but done in a Swedish way. Which makes for a great listen. From the very start of the album you'll be able to see what I mean. Very Bay City Thrash like. If you heard Meshuggah's newer stuff before you heard Contradictions Collapse then you're in for a surprise.

This album is undeniably a must have. And if you truly want to know Meshuggah's roots then you have to have it. Its also nice to have the None EP tracks on here as well. You get to see the start of some of the transition in sound and style. Simply great.

Not as far-removed as many people claim........2006-06-08

Meshuggah have always held a unique niche in metal. Their full-fledged "cyber metal" style wouldn't really begin until later in their career, but that is not to say that these Swedes weren't already churning out music with a similar technical flair. Sure, the songs on _Contradictions Collapse_ have obvious melodies, gang shouts, and rawer vocals - all the makings of Meshuggah are here. The huge amounts of technically-driven riffs and barrages of shifting precision polyrhythms are plentiful; even as far back as 1991, Meshuggah had all the power and intelligence that makes their style so good. Just listen to some of the guitar solos - weird, looping notes, courtesy of a 21-year-old Fredrik Thordendal, were already far ahead in the evolutionary plain of technical metal shreds. And although the guitars were still played with six strings then, and Mårten Hagström had yet to join the band, there was a certain extra punch to the crunch, so to speak, which was only to get even better in the years to come.

Granted, there are moments on this album that would never be played by Meshuggah again (namely the ACOUSTIC guitars on "Qualms of Reality" and "Choirs of Devastation"), but this was just Meshuggah's way of identifying what worked and didn't work for themselves. Even though I personally like what they did here, and think it did work quite well, it was their later styles that really pushed the proverbial envelope and made their music something special.

I've heard all sorts of comparisons to Bay Area thrash when this album is brought up, and although there is a certain amount of thrash to their sound, the technicality and brutal onslaught of heaviness is prevalent, making for some seriously powerful metal.

Then the _None_ EP came out in 1994, and Meshuggah proved that they would never be the same. Blocks of heaviness, a mechanical, droning bass in the background, stacks of increasingly unusual rhythms, and trippy tech-solos are in abundance. Even though there are still a few uneven moments (namely in Jens Kidman's vocal performance, which still has signs of organic origins), _None_ shows Meshuggah have evolved into a very different kind of beast, segueing directly into the cyber-thrash of their mighty 1995 album _Destroy, Erase, Improve_, which would of course open entire vistas of creativity which Meshuggah are so well-known for.

And here are both releases, together on one neat CD! So why did I only give this less than five stars? It's because of Nuclear Blast's shoddy packaging job. You get a tracklist on the back, a photo of the band's lineup from sometime after 1994, and lots of Scandinavian articles about the band from the time period. Lyrics? Nope. Recording info? Uh-uh. And the fifth track from None, "Aztec Two-Step" - a great track, by the way - was omitted, but this is slightly understandable due to the 80-minute time constraints of CDs. Why can't Nuclear Blast just reissue BOTH albums, SEPARATELY, with all lyrics, all info, all tracks, and maybe expanded liner notes? They'd make a ton of money, because lots of fans like me would buy them in a heartbeat. Oh well. It's a minor complaint about an otherwise terrific chronicle of the beginnings of one of the most unique and powerful metal bands of all time.

Contradictions Collapse!.......2005-09-30

The beginning of an enigmatic career for Meshuggah. This album isn't really that great compared to Meshuggah releases after this album, but still better than any other thrash album. The standout track is definitely Choirs Of Devastation. This is pretty much a thrash album and no where near as brutal as Meshuggah today. Still worthy enough to own.

Best Out Of The Worst.......2005-05-17

Best Meshugga album, which isnt saying much, atleast i can listen to this one.

Average customer rating:

Igloo Magazine's REVIEW
Beautifully balanced
Music for everday
Moves the earth and the sky
Atomica

Metropolitan
Atomica
Manufacturer: Positron! Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

Trip-Hop | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

General | Alternative Rock | Indie Music | Stores | Music

General | Dance & DJ | Indie Music | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000ALMSP4
Release Date: 2005-08-09

Tracks:

One Day In New York City
Delorian
Larsen
Salt
Recent
Quiver
Bittersweet
Sorrow
Pollen
Gun
Worry

Product Description

Metropolitan maneuvers effortlessly through genres, incorporating elements of trip hop, orchestral, downtempo, and lo-fi, all the while illustrating a compelling story of loss, affliction, collapse and recovery through Wade Alin's unadorned writing approach and Lauren Cheatham's impassioned delivery. While fans of Portishead, Bjork, and Lamb are certain to appreciate, Metropolitan introduces a sound that is distinctly Atomica.

Customer Reviews:

Igloo Magazine's REVIEW.......2005-12-02

Review by: Mark Teppo, Igloo Magazine (www.igloomag.com)
(09.11.05) The last time I saw Wade Alin, he was on stage surrounded by a crashing surf of buzz-saw guitars and chaotic electronics, howling into a microphone as if he was straining to vomit up his heart. The band was Christ Analogue, one of those vaguely industrial machines filled with the clatter of wrecked machinery, brittle electronics and ephedrine-fueled guitars. Imagine my surprise to hear Metropolitan, the record by his new project, Atomica, where the angst is traded for heartbreak, the guitars for violins and the cold clatter of jilted machinery has been swapped out for the warm morphine drip of a trip-hop inflected turntable. It's not that Alin's gone soft on us; he's just deigned to remove the metallic shell and let us touch the tender flesh beneath.

It isn't his voice you will hear on Metropolitan. Discovering evocative chanteuse Lauren Cheatham when he first relocated to Chicago (following many years in New York City), Alin realized her voice was the anchor of the record. She is the elegiac angel who adds an organic warmth to the songs as she channels Portishead's Beth Gibbons through a veil of thick silk while Alin surrounds her with a wealth of strings and brass and electronic equipment.

"Bittersweet" hangs on the cusp of a turntable loop, a tiny cry of warped vinyl that sounds like it was rescued from the Portishead Dummy sessions and let loose in Alin's studio to make small bird noises from the corner of the room while Cheatham's fragile ballad is laid down over a bed of strings. Static from an old record haunts Alin's siren in "Gun" as she sighs through an old microphone: "If I knew now / How to learn from the past / I would be who I wanted to be." A rusted loop plays behind the sordid rhythm section (stolen from the corner jazz lounge where they've been trapped for a decade or more) and tiny ephemera from a phantom guitar whispers and pleads beneath her voice, lending desperation to her sad tale. Percussion echoes through "Pollen," the sort of reverberation which rattles throughout an abandoned building (or heart) while Cheatham's narrative voice travels through a bustling city (that echo of sound again) and yet never manages to not be alone.

A bleak despair bleeds through Alin's retrospective re-creation of his time in New York City, and Lauren Cheatham adds such a weary worldliness to his lyrics that to listen to Metropolitan is to hear how a city can break your heart over and over again. But Alin's efforts through Atomica aren't to break things, but to move through and rectify the destruction of the past. He wants to gather all the pieces and fit them together once again. "You can't say I've never tried to love you / You can't say I've never tried to die for you," Cheatham sings in "Salt," and her voice, tarnished by the persistent weight of the city, remains pure at its core. The music of Metropolitan is suffused with the melancholy that so pervades trip-hop but Alin and company never succumb to the entropic end inherent in its decay.

Beautifully balanced.......2005-08-13

Atomica's genre isn't the kind of music I usually listen to, so I'm not your typical fan/panegyrist. Being a child of the '80s, I like my drums big, my guitars overdriven, and my vocals screaming. Having said that, Atomica has put together a beautiful piece of work in 'Metropolitan.' One of the album's strongest points is Wade Alin's very polished and balanced production. Unlike so much other 'electronica,' Atomica's music doesn't lean so heavily Alin's electronics or Percy Trayanov's bass that the more 'organic' elements get washed out. Matt Cordier's drumming is refreshingly present; his cymbal hits are surprisingly crisp in the finished recordings. There's even room for (gasp!) the odd guitar solo by Elliott Randall, who's work here sounds like something Terje Rypdal would write while in the grip of a Scandinavian winter (his lead on 'Recent' is particularly doom-laden). I thought guitar solos didn't exist anymore; I certainly wouldn't have thought I'd have to go to a down-tempo album to find a really good one. And who knew my girl Lauren had such a voice! Alin must be proud to have such a group of musicians bringing his songwriting to life.

Music for everday.......2005-08-12

This album is defiantly a must have for basically anyone due to the nature of the tracks shifting to fit almost anyone that enjoys music for what it should be. Metropolitan has melodies to fit into a peaceful soothing setting, which is great for any day when you need to relax. The energy put into this album has been very well represented due to the beautiful production styles of Wade Alin. The singer (Lauren Cheatham) pours her soul into the lyrics and does an effective job of pulling you into the music itself. The musical guests make for even more diversity throughout the album. The album inspires the listener to see that there is a lot more to music then face value. This is the finest production and album as a whole I've experienced this whole year.

Moves the earth and the sky.......2005-08-11

Metropolitan is truly an amazing work of art. Lauren Cheatham brings new meaning to "artist" and "vocalist". The smooth tones in what is labeled "electronic music" complement Cheatham's voice. Atomica may be the new sound of the millennium.

Atomica.......2005-08-11

Fans of Bjork, Portishead, or any kind of music that's been described as "downtempo" will be in audio-heaven with this release. "Metropolitan" manages to sound somber without being depressing, intelligent without being pretentious, and relaxing without being boring and forgettable. While the programming and musicianship is top-notch throughout the entire album, Lauren Cheatham is truly the main attraction. Her soft, beautiful voice fits the tone and mood of the songs perfectly.

I'm having a hard time putting to words how much I like this album, so I'll leave it at this: "Metropolitan" is nothing short of stunning. If this isn't the best album of 2005, it's definitely in the top five.

Average customer rating:

Good, but not perfect.
Its still in my cd player!
A solidly built effort
simply awesome

The Great Collapse
Fear My Thoughts
Manufacturer: Lifeforce Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Progressive Metal | Progressive | Rock | Styles | Music

Alternative Metal | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Death Metal | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

General | Hard Rock & Metal | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Hell Sweet Hell
Vulcanus
Small Boy and a Grey Heaven
Inside the Machine
What Demons Do To Saints

ASIN: B000219KTY
Release Date: 2004-06-01

Tracks:

Velvet
Great Collapse
Rituals
Sirens Singing
Hollow Inside
Architect
Challenge
Mission Immortality
Norm Ad
Reign

Customer Reviews:

Good, but not perfect........2005-02-08

This CD is great! Each track is about 5 minutes long except maybe 2 tracks. There is plenty of intricate drumming and guitar work here. And what really impresses me is the noticable bass guitar. There are possibly two or more tracks with bass break downs! The vocals are harsh and but the music is melodic. Occasionally their guitar player or drummer come in for some backup vocals which adds somewhat to the songs. The lyrics are great! Dealing with the human mind and also politics today. My only gripe, and this is me as a analytical person, but in track 10, Reign, there is an error in the production and it skips briefly. It's noticable but to the casual listener it may not be noticable. Maybe it's just my copy...who knows. Anyways, there is plenty here to keep things interesting so I would recommend this to anyone that enjoys hardcore/trash metal.

Its still in my cd player!.......2005-02-01

Straight up, get this album. I was blown away by this!
We can only hope that they will get to come to America.

A solidly built effort.......2004-06-19

According to the promotional writing on the back, this band is considered to be part of the European metalcore genre. However, the first four or five tracks sound more like your standard death metal with haunting growls, distorted guitars and the required crushing drum beats. This area of the CD was interchangeable with most death metal works of late but there was a definite shift in their policy of music making that just might give them an edge over the competition. As the CD progresses, you may hear hints of SHADOWS FALL and HEAVAN SHALL BURN as they engaged in using more identifiable melodies blended with voices that were more human like instead of the animalistic cries. For a comparison you could look to the singer of THE BLED as a starting point. Musically, they become more melody driven with each passing song and by the end of the record, you feel as though you are listening to an entirely different band. This could either prove that they have diversity in their music or it could prove that they are teetering on the brink of being directionless. Irrespective of that perception, this complex record could appeal to a wide variety of fans from the metalcore enthusiasts to the staunch death metal followers. It was nice to hear something else form Europe that didn't sound like a rehash of Iron Maiden or the thousands of other "power metal" bands.

simply awesome.......2004-06-02

Oh man, if you like hardcore, then this is for you. Simply amazing. Hard, fast, and melodic. This CD just never gets old. Buy this now!

Average customer rating:

Monotonous at times but good
Addictive
Exquisite debut is one of 2004's best albums!
not exceptional, but not bad either...

Collapse & Sever
Mono Chrome
Manufacturer: Metropolis Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music

Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0002IQMSE
Release Date: 2004-08-10

Tracks:

Awakened
Riveted
This Life
Indestructable
Liquid High
Thunder
Solutions
Fall In To You
Sold
This Death
Riveted - (Assemblage 23 remix)

Album Description

Victoria Lloyd of Claire Voyant and Clint Sand of Cut. Rate.Box formed Monochrome in 2002. Described as danceable yet dark electronic, Mono Chrome's material pushes the envelope in the EBM/industrial scene and continues to do so with this debut. These eleven tracks incorporate components from various musical genres such as industrial and trip-hop. Lloyd's vocals add a unique flavor and smooth over the sharp layers of electronic sound, which distinguishes the band from other female fronted EBM groups. Also includes a remix of Assemblage 23's "Rivited". For fans of VNV Nation, Apoptygma Berzerk, and Covenant.

Customer Reviews:

Monotonous at times but good.......2007-02-13

Ever since I heard "Sold" on a Metropolis Records compilation a few years ago, I have been meaning to buy Mono Chrome's Collapse and Sever cd. I finally got my hands on a copy of the cd and have been listening to it non-stop. Claire Voyant's own Victoria Lloyd provides lead vocals while Clint M. Sand provides the music. It took me several listens for Collapse and Sever to sink in because the music tends to sound the same. The repetitive synth beats unfortunately brings down the cd. The beats are danceable but generic beats that you would hear in most EBM bands. What keeps the music afloat is Victoria's vocals. The production wasn't all that hot but it wasn't terrible either. It certainly could have used some improvement. On the other hand, there were lots of solid pop hooks. My favorite song is both versions of "Riveted". I especially loved Assemblage 23's remixed version. I wished the rest of the cd sounded more like that song. If Victoria and Clint ever made another Mono Chrome cd, I hope that they branch out more musically. I was left a bit unimpressed with Collapse & Sever.

Addictive.......2005-05-05

Collapse and Sever is outstanding futurepop with angelic vocals by Lloyd. The programming is very reminiscent of Tom Shear's (Assemblage 23), but it has a flavor that blends very well with the beautifully ethereal female vocals. Lovers of Dead Can Dance to Covenant will appreciate this album. Like Assemblage 23's Storm, every track has a similar feel but enough difference to make it a worthwhile addition to the album.

Exquisite debut is one of 2004's best albums!.......2004-11-25

Taking maybe the best ethereal vocalist around today and backing her with some great EBM type electronics is a recipie for a successful album. and Mono Chrome's debut "Collapse and Sever" certainly delivers that. There is a melodic and often soothing quality to these songs and a sublime and excellent vocals and lyrics which are very seldom seen in the "EBM/Industrial" genre but will be be very familliar to Claire Voyant fans. The result is some very dancable high energy songs which at the same time never sound harsh and abrasive. If you have heard Claire-Voyant's remix album "Time and Again" you will have some idea what to expect from this album. But while "Time and Again" was a very good album, the songs on "Collapse and Sever" have the advantage of being original creations and not reworked songs which originally sounded quite different. comparisons could also be made to the Machine in the Garden and perhaps the Tear Garden's masterful debut "Tired Eyes Slowly Burning" Those who like a high BPM will certainly be energized by tracks "This Life", "Riveted", "Awakened" and "Sold" among others and the absolutely exquisite song "Liquid High" which perhaps best represents the fusion of and tension between grace and engergy on this album."Thunder" has an almost trip-hop feel and the somewhat slower tempo counterpoint "This Death" is a beautiful song which would be very much at home on a recent Claire Voyant album. All tracks on this album are good and most are great. This album is a perfect fusion of grace and technology and the masculine and feminine. It is darkwave at it's absolute finest and will be a definite contender for the best album released in 2004 in my opinion.

not exceptional, but not bad either..........2004-09-10

with the considerable talent that Clint Sand and Victoria Lloyd both have within their own realms, this combination of their two styles is kind of like painting over something without using primer; they dont stick... Victoria's vocals have definitely been better. Her work on Claire Voyant is fabulous, but here she seems too stretched, almost whiny. And the programming, although it definitely has its good moments, is a bit sparse. Overall, it sounds like they got the idea to work together, and maybe they tried too hard to make it fit. It is good music, but there is something slightly unsatisfying about it. Even in Assemblage 23's remix of 'riveted' it seems as though the extraordinarily talented Tom Shear could not seem to improve the track.

Average customer rating:

Foo Fighters and Cheap Trick

Prototype
The Big Collapse
Manufacturer: Militia
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music
ASIN: B0000CD5I1
Release Date: 2003-10-07

Tracks:

Love Empire
Deliver Me
Pull Out the Guts
Prototype
Private War
Adds up to you
Automatic
Colossal
We all end up dead
Phantom Power

Album Description

Joshua Loucka - vocals, guitar Matt Kane - guitar, backing vocals Gavin Van Vlack - bass, backing vocals Kyle Stevenson - drums, backing vocals

Customer Reviews:

Foo Fighters and Cheap Trick.......2004-09-15

This album ROCKS! If the Foo Fighters and Cheap trick had a baby, it would be Big Collapse... very melodic, catchy riffs, thoughtful lyrics and insane drums. I saw them live at CBGB's this year, and I was blown away!

In this day and age where huge corporations dominate the majority of what we see and hear on radio and TV (Clear Channel and MTV), I've been feeling inundated with so-called rock bands that "look pretty" but musically, rate anywhere from mediocre to just plain bad... Just watch MTV (when they actually play videos).

Big Collapse definitely stands out as a diamond in the rough. Some people classify them as a Punk band and sometimes Emo... I'll just say that they are more of a straight ahead Rock 'N Roll band. Something I haven't seen in music in a long while.

Music:

Music

music

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