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Machine Head: Unto the locust

14/10/11 || Smalley

Though “Burn my eyes” and “The more things change…” are absolutely killer, classic slabs of groove metal, Machine Head over the past 12 years has still been maddeningly inconsistent; they shamelessly cashed in on the nu metal bandwagon with “The burning red”/“Supercharger”, and nearly broke up amidst the ensuing fallout. ”Through the ashes of empires” was a respectable attempt at bringing back the old punch, but still had a lil’ too much nu metal whine, and while the much-praised “The blackening” had no “blame-it-on-my-parents” style lyrics, the band did try to get too progressive with the songwriting, and bit off more than they could chew with the 9+ minute songs, resulting in unnecessary bloating (but at least no constipation).

Fortunately, Machine Head continues to evolve for the better with “Unto the locust”, and while it isn’t quite as brain-fuckingly amazing as “Burn my eyes” was, it comes pretty damn close, and is easily the band’s most consistent, compelling record in good long while. Opener “I am hell (sonata in C#)” kicks off with a synchronized chorus harmonizing hauntingly in the background, as Robb melodically chants “sangre sani” (Latin for “blood saint”) over and over in the front.

Pretentious? Maybe, but it does such a good job of creating a tangible, visceral atmosphere, you won’t give a fuck, and at any rate, Head soon demonstrates that they haven’t gone all artsy-fartsy on us as a slow, pounding rhythm guitar enters the picture, followed by Robb declaring “I! AM DEATH!” in a completely twisted, distorted vocal effect. Fucken sweet. From there, “I am hell” remains the tour de force it started out as, going from a long, furious-thrashing section with excellent soloing and the drum kit getting the ever-living FUCK bashed out of it, to back to the brutal, pounding riffing, to a super-classy, calm acoustic part, complete with subtle orchestra strings.

What a fucken way to open up an album, eh? “Be still and know” isn’t as ambitious, but still satisfies with its dueling, entwined lead guitars work, signature, Machine Head-heavy riffs, and memorably catchy chorus, and lead single “Locust” keeps the album going strong with a powerfully ominous intro, more catchy riffing, and a magnificently beautiful, Gothenburg-y melodic section where the lead guitar really gets to sing.

“This is the end” starts off with classical-ish acoustic guitars that almost sound like they could’ve come from “The somberlain”(!), before exploding into a torrent of furious lead guitar, pounding percussion, and riffing that nicely straddles the middle between speed and grooviness. The soaring clean vox in the chorus are superb as well, and round out the all-around package of awesome here. “Darkness within” continues the theme of acoustic guitar intros, but takes it farther than before, with its bitter tone complimenting and strengthening Robb’s clean vocals, before the transition into electric playing comes in motherfucken seamlessly, keeping the momentum ramping up and up, before the bittersweet riffs take things over. Very smart work, Head.

Unfortunately, “Peals before swine” then fails to live up the rest of the album’s level, with dull, droning riffs that fail to capture you into their groove, and sections that just fall flat on their face when it comes to listener engagement. The more melodic portions in the second half do tickle the ear just right, but even then, it goes on too long, some it seems blatantly plagiarized from Testament, and it still isn’t enough to save the song. If they had combined the melodic stuff here with some catchier heavy material, we’d have another success on our hands, but alas, “swine” ultimately disappoints.

Fortunately, it’s the only such disappointment on the record, as the climatic “Who we are” closes “locust” out with military band-style percussion and a children’s chorus, courtesy of the band’s offspring (again pretentious, but I like it), before taking off into urgent, thrashy playing as Robb angrily condemns the world, and affirms Machine Head’s determination to persevere through whatever may come. The perfect song & statement to close this album out with, if my musical skills-less ass doesn’t say so itself.

So all in all, “Unto the locust” is kick-ass, ambitious, highly intelligent modern metal; without a doubt, Machine Head demonstrates that they’ve learned how to balance their ambition with keeping the audience entertained, and now know how to cut the fat and keep the longer songs filled with material that actually feels necessary, instead of being extended for the sake of extension (the reason for the penis-pills market, incidentally). There are a few less interesting sections and one disappointing track, but besides that, “locust” is incredibly spot-on, and the best metal record I’ve heard this year. Have no doubts about it, the band is finally back for real, and has been reborn as the force to be reckoned with that they started as. Machine-fucken-Head indeed.

Information
Released: 2011
Label: Roadrunner
Website: www.machinehead1.com
Band
Robb Flynn: guitars, vocals
Adam Duce: bass
Dave McClain: drums
Phil Demmel: guitars

Tracklist
01. I Am Hell (Sonata in C#)
02. Be Still And Know
03. Locust
04. This Is The End
05. The Darkness Within
06. Pearls For Swine
07. Who We Are

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