Ch-ch-ch-changes
We have talked about the evolution of a band’s sound or sudden shifts in style many times before on this here show. Well guess what? Those discussions happen again this week, based on varied examples. You have been warned.
Reviews:
Exhumed – Death Revenge (Relapse)
Enslaved – E (Nuclear Blast)
Veil of Maya – False Idol (Sumerian)
In Search of Sun – Virgin Mother Funk (Spinefarm)
Exhumed – Death Revenge
Enslaved – E
Veil Of Maya – False Idol
In Search Of Sun – Virgin Funk Motherb>
The Sideshow Podcast 
Those are some harsh numbers for E by Enslaved. While I do agree with much of what you said about E and the sentiment about it, I don’t agree that the negative aspects of the album are as bad as you guys say they are. First off, either you didn’t mention it or you didn’t know that the band has a new member on keyboards and clean vocals. This could be a big reason why E sounds different than their last couple of albums. The album certainly does meander. Long passages just seem to go on without going anywhere and fail to build any tension or resolution. You mentioned some reviews called it avant-garde but I would say it’s more ambient, sort of like background music. Nothing about E demands your attention. I also agree that the beginning of the album is off putting. It’s a pet peeve of mine when I start an album and then have to double check that I actually started it. If an album starts out with silence, I think that something might be wrong so I proceed to check that my headphones are plugged in and that the volume isn’t turned all the way down, only to discover that the album just starts out with nothing except for the neighing of a horse a minute later. But once the music actually starts on E, none of it is actually bad. There’s never a point where I find myself wanting to turn it off, even if it doesn’t leave any impression on me. While E won’t be appearing on my year end list, it’s certainly not something that deserves a rating of a 1.
Brian: We did not mention it, but I did know about the new member. While it is unclear if he is the reason behind the shift, that is somewhat irrelevant because that fact doesn’t change what we got. Clearly the rest of the band had no (or little) problem doing this. And saying the album is “background music” because “nothing about E demands your attention” is kind of a HUGE reason why we disliked it, especially compared to their previous output. But to your last comment – not wanting to turn it off – is another main difference: I did want to turn it off. Sure, maybe part of it was being annoyed at the band, but I did not find the writing engaging and everything just dragged. If i want background music, I’ll go listen to a film score or something. A 1 is a bit harsh, which is why I gave it a 2. Lol
I stand by my 1. As I think I mentioned when justifying my rating, if this were a first album or being reviewed in a vacuum, I probably would have given it a 2 because there were a few moments of decent riffs. However as we have THIRTEEN other albums by these guys as reference, many of which we like (a couple of which we’ve reviewed highly), it is hard to overlook that.
I’ve already removed this from my library.
-n
That’s some of the harshest criticism we’ve heard on this podcast since Kyle left.