THE DEVIN TOWNSEND BAND: ACCELERATED EVOLUTION

I have a feeling that amongst Townsend fans, each listener would either prefer "Terria' or "Accelerated Evolution", one or the other, because although both share in their colossal amounts of reverb, both albums are structure very differently.

"Terria" is vast, grandiose, quick moments of bombast interspersed with vast wastelands of atmosphere and synth overlays. "Accelerated Evolution" is more concise, taking that same bombast and open space and constricting it betwixt catchy verses and choruses.

I'm not saying "Terria" is minimalist by any stretch, but I find myself listening to "AE" much more often than the former. "Depth Bomb" is a perfect example. Right away, it's loud, it's fast paced, it's catchy, and it can easily make its way onto your daily workout playlist. "Storm" takes that same energy and slows down the speed almost into a waltz like feel, with Townsend's falsetto's and screams soaring above huge synths and pounding drums.

And that to me is my only little niggle with "Terria". On songs like "Mountain" and "Earth Day", the action happened immediately for a brief couple minutes or so, then faded away into the musical equivalent of a prairie. "Deadhead" for example starts off the exact opposite way. The lone reverbed guitar builds the tension to the point when the drums come in, it creates a musical effect akin to the scene of an arriving war machine, or something out of Star Wars with the Star Destroyer hovering into view. And through that effect, my attention is still maintained, because even though it is a fairly minimalist song, you know what you're getting for the next 8 minutes: reverb, falsetto, loud synths. This main theme continues for 4 minutes before the drums fade out, then the guitars introduce a B theme for a couple minutes, and then drums segue back to the A theme and closes the song out with the verse Townsend sings in the beginning.

And that's kinda of the thing with "Deadhead" and "Awake". They're both structured the same way, so when you listen to them, they become predictable, and thus, more enjoyable (if there was an oxymoron). But I do find myself listening to these songs while I'm driving, which I can't say for any songs off of "Terria" (yet, I'm still working on that).

This album is essentially the best combination of the catchy songs of "Biomech", with the massive reverb of "Infinity" and the colossal space and air of "Terria", all in digestible chunks. It's the best of all worlds. "Suicide" is a bare-knuckled brawler, filled with a haunting dissonant theme humming through the echoing air, while "Traveller", "Sunday Afternoon" and "Slow Me Down" are essentially the equivalent of pop-rock songs with so much more heart and texture than anything else. Basically, these are songs that make you feel like a badass when you drive along listening to them.

The way I look at DT albums, I look at them like progressions, like you can imagine Townsend finishing "Terria", releasing it, then looking back on it saying "Ya know, that was pretty good, but I think I can do better." And thus "Accelerated Evolution" was born. And honestly, I thank you for making that decision, good sir. It's just such a happy album, a musical experience that just bathes you in reverb and sound and good vibes. One of my all time favorites.