DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT: DECONSTRUCTION

I mean seriously, just look at any picture of him. Not exactly the most photogenic guy out there.

Regardless, his bipolarity is one of curiosity and wonder, as all his music is evidence of. Each album he writes focuses on certain aspects of music making: Massive reverb in quick metallic bursts ("Physicist"), large, expansive soundscapes with huge crumbling power chords ("Terria"), even MORE reverb in more accessible chunks ("Accelerated Evolution"), beautiful new age soundscape ambiance ("Ghost"), down tempo, grunge-rooted metal ("Ki"), utter insane, off the meds mode ("Ziltoid"), different take on pop rock, the "Same but different" road ("Addicted", "Epicloud") and master composer, storyteller and architect, blending all his thoughts together in a cohesive harmonious balance ("Synchestra").

Except this album is none of that.

Frankly, "Deconstructed" is by far the heaviest album he's ever made. In fact, I'll go beyond and say it's heavier than ANYTHING he's made with Strapping Young Lad. After all, SYL was just ear bludgeoning, straight up metal with progressive influences.

Now, take that sound, and re-purpose it so it sounds good in those big cathedral halls of Notre Dame. You know, that church with ceilings 5 million miles into the sky? That's essentially what this album sounds like.

No, it doesn't sound like church music, but rather that it has multiple dimensions to it, like it has layers (cue the Shrek onions joke). In terms of just the amount of different sounds and noises that hit your ears at the same time, at the same velocity with such violence, only Fleshgod Apocalypse's "Agony" and "Labyrinth" albums can even come close, and even they falter in some aspects. "Elegy, off "Labyrinth", is so brutal, and so balistically fast, that not only does it sound superhuman (especially from a drummers' perspective), but it sounds so cartoonishly fast, I can't even take it seriously, even though it's essentially straight up grindcore, my most despised metal genre.

But while "Deconstructed" shares the same brutality, huge epic soundscapes, haunting choruses and beat-your-face-into-a-hockey-puck-shaped-meat-patty blastbeats, this is by far the most haunting metal album I've ever heard. Constant blastbeats desensitize the human ear to become used to them, thus reducing their effectiveness. What Townsend does is alter the approach every song takes. "Praise The Lowered", for example, doesn't sound like the start of one of the most oppressive metal records ever conceived. Rather, it sounds like an experimental electronic track. But Townsend's eerily calming vocals prove otherwise, and almost lull you into a state of unconsciousness, but slowly, layers of vocals and reverb are layered before finally Townsend shrieks into life and the brutal begins. Even with these brief 2 minutes of trudging, ear-pounding metal, your ears are assailed with a barrage of overdubbed screams, shrieks and singing, along with HEAVILY reverbed guitars, string samples, choral samples and jaw-crushing bass drums, before it all fades out into an electronic haze, which essentially sets the tone of the album: Brutally heavy metal, but in completely unexpected and surprising forms.

"Stand" for example starts off like the beginning of some grunge-influence dirt rock. But surely, the anger builds up, the tension in the guitar chords increase, and one by one, layer after layer is added before Townsend literally throws the kitchen sink at your eardrums. The tiny details, the guy yelling, the soldiers marching, the cute little bell and string ditties, all while the power chords are becoming more and more distorted and more and more growls accompany Townsend before his "Ready?" breaks out into a trademark shriek behind more heavy chords, and once the chorus hits and the screams of "Stand!" ring out, you think it hits the apex, that it can't get any better (or worse).

But just then, it all fades out, and all that remains is that plucking of the guitars that began the track underneath the fading electronics. This is finally is Townsends' "master switch". Just as the buildup couldn't continue anymore, he pulls the rug out from beneath your feat, and he as you right where he wants you: confused, perplexed, not knowing where it's going next. And here is where Townsend truly shines, metal at its most haunting. His whispers give way to stuttering double stops with eerie whistling noises as backdrop. A rousing "Show yourself!" kicks back into the frenzy, and an overlap of soaring vocals is the equivalent to a beam of light piercing through a large black crowd, right before Townsend screams "I will never back down, DO YOU HEAR ME?" And then finally the screams (accompanied by the fantastic Mikael Åkerfeldt of Opeth) of "Stand!" ring out in a finale that's absolutely jaw-dropping through a good set of headphones. The dimensions, the textures, just the spacial relativity between the drums, guitars, screams and orchestral overdubs is downright incredible. It's cataclysmic, almost apocalyptic in its nature, the finale of this song. It's absolutely glorious.

Of course, Townsend doesn't like to stop making music, and a classic black metal screech heralds the quick and tasty "Juular", very black metal-ish with hints of creepy carnival oompah-loompah accompaniment from a backup choir. It's quick and devastating, with the chorus echoing hints of Dimmu Borgir, a gothic deathcore group that heavily borrows from black metal and loves its symphonic underpinnings. It's creepy and loud, and the blastbeats that break out at the end are enough to completely demolish anyone's eardrums that are foolish enough to crank the volume up on this song. The ending is classic deathcore.

"Planet Of The Apes" is much different to the previous tracks though. Its length rivals that of "Stand", but whereas the latter was fairly straightforward in its design, a slow crescendo building to roughly 3 minutes of metal, a sudden drop and then a final quick burst at the end, "Planet" never lets off the gas pedal, and shifts and weaves a tapestry of different phrases and verses that surprise and perplex. The first few verses expect pure metal, but then a flurry of choruses and vocals (including some from Tommy Giles Rogers of BTBAM fame) lighten the mood, and from there on out, you might as well be riding a roller coaster in the dark. It twists and turns and never leaves you in the same place twice, but is an absolutely satisfying experience.

"Sumeria" begins with a bang right out of the gate, and epic contribution of vocals (and choir?) perfectly at home as music for a movie trailer. The gothic influences here are uncanny, as haunting choirs symbolize doom and gloom and despair, a theme throughout this entire album, but especially here as Townsend is accompanied by Joe Duplantier (Gojira) and Paul Masvidal (Cynic). Duplantier's signature screams really contrast nicely with the almost polished sort of singing from the choruses, as he rips and tears through an unruly set of chords and drums. Then, of course, Townsend jump cuts (abruptly, I might add) to a simple twinkling of a music box, before Devin jumps back in with some soothing vocals and acoustic guitar, with Masivdal getting in on the action as well, an ending completely unexpected and yet totally DT.

The amusingly named "The Mighty Masturbator" (for those of us with a mental age of 5) has a very Tenacious D sound to the opening plucks, which, speculative as I am, though it might have given way to scenes of parody and mockery. Until I realized at 16 and a half minutes, that this beast, the goliath on the record, was going to be far more, and that all becomes clear when the music fades out for a brief second and an absolutely crushing breakdown follows suit with backup "ahhs" following suit.

Then about 4 minutes in Townsend goes on this while "saving the world" spiel, and sounds like classic Tenacious D. Interspersing a bit of humor and what has so far been a quite serious album, which is good, because insanity must always produce some humor, and Townsend provides his fair share especially on this track, with hints of saloon player piano-esque music. And as the song develops, hints of DT technicality pops in here and there and at the halfway point, the metal fades out to this sort of (spoof?) of electronic hype music, which continues on for a good 4 minutes or so, before the metal comes back in a fairly uptempo, but almost fairly optimistic pace. Then in traditional fashion, Townsend's humor returns in a waltz-like carnival scene that just makes you feel happy, in a weird sort of way, before ending in a traditional grande finale "Amen" chorus.

"Pandemic" seems to pick up where "Juular" left off, blastbeats bursting through a wall of sound, guitars, screams and noise. The quickest of all the songs on this album is also by far the most punishing, absolutely no mercy is spared on the ear here, with the meat in the middle really channeling SYL's glory days.

Then we get to "Deconstructed". You can't mistake this song for anything else, as the song starts with a groan, and a loud farting noise. Typical Townsend. This is just another roller coaster of insanity and drug-induced babbling of nonsense. Despite that, he also has some guests helping out here such as Oderus Urungus from GWAR, along with Fredrik Thordendal, technical guitar wizard, to try to add some serious in between Townsend's farting noises, spurts of vomiting and rambling about cheeseburgers. It's not Jimmy Buffet, but this song is the very definition of Devin's truly mad side, and frankly it's quite refreshing after frankly quite a serious album up to this point.

After all, what Townsend album would be complete without a 9 minute dedication to the cheeseburger? And who doesn't like cheeseburgers? Frankly, it doesn't take long for someone to mention vegetarian before complete grindcore freak-out mode is activated, and it continues to with typical random quips ("Did someone say beer?"). Despite the crude humor and complete lack of seriousness, this song could potentially be one of DT's most progressive efforts to date. Taking a subject so benign as a cheesburger and essentially create a mini rock opera around it sounds ludicrous, idiotic and frankly impossible, and yet somehow the majestic finale almost makes you forget you just spent 8 minutes of your life listening to fart noises and cheeseburger prayers. Except it's brilliant, and I regret nothing.

Although this should really be coming down to the end, because when Devin starts singing about cheeseburgers, I think it's time for this album to wrap up, and he agrees, as he screams into the closer "Poltergeist". This to me is probably the weakest album on the track, mainly because since atmospheric noises connect most if not all of the tracks on the album, it feels more like a finale that's best appreciated when listening to the album all the way through, and the very end is a rip-roaring headbanging of a good time, with the chorus setting up a haunting backdrop to this violent rocking-back-and-forth motion created by the drums and guitars. In short, brilliant music to listen to when you've just conquered the most powerful army in the world and you're storming the capital like a dictator.

VERDICT: In terms of brutality (which I define as an onslaught of noise upon your ears that continues to surprise and doesn't sustain itself for your ear to get used to it), not even Fleshgod Apocalypse can top this. Townsend's flexibility in singing and screaming (an almost Mike Pattonian feat) weaves tapestries of fear and terror around his army of reverbed guitars, pounding drums and haunting choirs. Even when you get used to it, you anticipate those moments where all hell breaks lose. In short, it's not just a compositional masterpiece, but it's still a signature DT sound, the humor is there, an homage to SYL is there, and frankly, that's all you need.

Of course, this is not an accessible album by any means, unless you're a rabid Devin Townsend fan. Because even if you're a grindcore fan or progressive metal fan or black metal fan, this album is still a different beast. It's a hybrid, a menagerie of chaos and destruction pulled together through Townsend's own corrupt mind and stitched together with a little help from some of his friends.

All in all, though, as a testament to metal as a genre, this is one of THE crowning jewels. It's overwhelming, and it exhausts you before you even reach the end of the album. The extremes this album undertakes pull you into its realm. You don't listen to these songs while working out, you sit down and envision a battle with this as the accompanying soundtrack. That's how I personally judge a progressive album. Some albums are made to be jams, to accompany a drive to work or a joyride, or while you work out. Others (especially the best progressive ones) are meant to be stories. They force you to sit down and enjoy it, revel in it, soak up the emotion, the energy, the passion, and this frankly checks all those boxes.

A definitive must to ANY and all metal fans, and absolutely a must-have for the Townsend faithful.

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