Devin Townsend continues to confound. Somewhat predictably, his new album KI is nothing like anything he’s ever done before. Part of a 4 album cycle, all due this year, Ki is the mellow one. The albums will get heavy (Strapping Young Lad style one would assume) before going all quiet again. Well that’s nice.
Devin sobered up and apparently has got all growed up too. He also shaved is trademark hair off (this is truly a sad turn of events). Time will tell if this is a good thing, but Ki is an impressive start to this new venture.
Heaven Send is the schizophrenic center piece. A mesmerizing prog-rock epic, reminiscent of Porcupine Tree with a bit of Nine Inch Nails thrown in for good measure. The driving female sung mantra really gets the head nodding. This is certainly my favourite Townsend recording since Synchestra. Nice one Dev!
Since Faith No More reformed I’ve been musing on whether their legendary status means that I should like them (or at least as much as I did 10 years ago). So I embarked on a audio oddesy, trawling through their back catalogue, to analyse what I really think of them.
Listening to Faith No More is like listening to a mishmash of pretty much all mainstream rock that came after them. This is sometimes a little off putting. For example, there were times when listening to Angel Dust that I felt like I was listening to Linkin Park…eeek! This is not an uncommon problem, and is a testament to their influence. The problem is, a lot of the music that the inspired (not least the turgid rot of Nu-metal) is utter toss. I don’t want to listen to it, or even feel like I’m listening to it!
This is not all bad news. Some of my favourite bands are heavily influenced by Faith No More (The Dillinger Escape Plan for example). Also, due to their effortless ability to churn out stonking tunes, their somewhat less talented offspring are left confounded in their ability to write and record sogs such as Falling to Pieces and A Small Victory.
Conclusion: Faith No More are still ace, even if they have been tarnished by their own success.
Anyway, today’s forgotten tune is off King for a Day, Fool for a Lifetime
. Like all the best Faith No More songs, it obstinately doesn’t do what you expect it to:
