M.O.L. stands for “Meaning of Life”, a song from “The Sickness” and it’s the title of a DVD released in 2002.
They all started off the same as other bands. Each member performed in various bands before hooking up.
But the vocalist spot was proving a problem. They put an ad out and Dave Draiman answered the ad. He was the anti-rock star with real short hair and sandals but he was onboard with focusing on originals.
And when Dan Donegan played an original riff and Draiman started singing a melody, that was it. That song became “Want”.
There is studio footage from November 25, 1999 and December 2, 1999 and its cool to see how “Bill Ward like”, Mike Wengren is on the drums, very groovy like with a bit of swing.
And Johnny K was not what I expected him to look like. I was thinking like another Kevin Churko. Even though I’ve seen his name on so many albums I never really googled him or read any interviews.
It’s always strange watching things back and the way bassist Fuzz talks about “how lucky the band got with David” but in the end it was the personality differences between Draiman and Fuzz which led to him getting fired.
In Australia this DVD release did good business and it was certified Platinum.
Dream Theater broke through in 1992, it seemed that they just appeared overnight. Breaking through for Dream Theater still meant “obscurity from the mainstream” however with a “cult audience” that appreciated them.
And when they signed with Roadrunner in the 2000’s, a pile of money was thrown their way. Each new deal means a larger advance paid up front by the label which needs to be recouped in some way.
And for their self-titled release, Dream Theater partnered up with organizations that have nothing to do with their core audience like US Today and Grammy Awards websites as the first online sites to stream the new songs. Because the money they got needs to be recouped.
We are living in the era that is all about creativity. Artists need to be creating and releasing all the time, otherwise they are here today and gone tomorrow.
Metal bands have weathered the storm so far, as fans of these genre’s still tend to purchase albums, however the writing is on the wall. It’s about listens.
YNGWIE MALMSTEEN
The Fury was being clueless and talking about a music industry that didn’t exist because no one was buying his albums.
I was constantly listening to the Avenged Sevenfold “Hail To The King” album as it connected with me. I admit that the connection comes from the similarities of the songs on the new album to the bands that I grew up on.
Spotify streams for the song “Hail To The King” at this point in time was 1,884,995. Today, 8 years later, the song has 336,620,443 streams.
Shepherd Of Fire had 495,889 streams in 2013 and now 128,897,165.
Going back in time, I remember going to the record store with about $20 to $30 in my back pocket. I always looked forward to those days. It was what I lived for. However as exciting as the experience was, it always had to end with me deciding which albums to buy at that moment and which albums to buy next time around as I could never afford everything that I wanted.
With the rise of the CD, this only got more expensive.
When I used to purchase albums, money was the factor as to what I decided to purchase and listen too. Fast forward to now, time is the factor as to what I decide to listen too.
I was flicking through a Guitar World issue from 1995 that was talking about albums that came out in 1994.
I mentioned the magazines Top 10 and then provided my Top 10.
Motley Crue – Motley Crue
What can I say, Bob Rock killed it in the producer’s chair, capturing Motley Crue at their heaviest. It is groove rock, mixed with classic rock, mixed with heavy metal. Listen to the interludes of Droppin Like Flies and Hooligan’s Holiday for supreme Korn like heaviness.
Machine Head – Burn My Eyes
Robb Flynn’s vocal style is his life style. A lot of people have tried to imitate it however you have had to have lived his lifestyle in order to pull it off.
Leviathan – Deepest Secrets Beneath
A progressive metal band that deserves greater accolades. Think Geddy Lee vocals on a bed of technical metal riffs.
Dream Theater – Awake
Worthy follow up to “Images and Words” and the last album to feature the talents of Kevin Moore. Of course Jordan Rudess is a far more accomplished pianist, however to me Kevin Moore is a better band member, due to his lyrical and vocal melody writing.
Pantera – Far Beyond Driven
What else can be said about Pantera that hasn’t been said. They kept the flag flying for groove and thrash metal, while other leaders jumped ship or broke up.
Korn – Korn
Any album that has an ominous shadow of a man in a kids playground on the cover already has a lot to live up to. In this case, Korn delivered a brutal first album. Not bad for a band that got signed solely based on their demo and no live shows.
Savatage – Handful Of Rain
Dark and sorrowful. The best way to pay a tribute to a fallen brother is to keep the music alive. Savatage and especially Jon Oliva, did exactly that.
Megadeth – Youthanasia
Dave Mustaine and Megadeth never achieved the “success” in sales as Metallica however to me, they defined and pushed the boundaries of technical thrash metal. Can you ever imagine James Hetfield singing over the “Holy Wars” riff. With “Youthanasia”, Megadeth delivered a killer rock album, which if i had to pick between “Youthanasia” and “Load” from Metallica, “Youthansia” wins hands down.
Testament – Low
When a band is more or less written off by the press, that is when they deliver. However due to a lack of label support, the album didn’t get out of the gates properly.
Slayer – Divine Intervention
I was going to put Kyuss or Soundgarden here, however my loyalty to Slayer wins out in the end.
I caught em live on the “Ballbreaker” tour and little did I know that would be the last time I would watch em live.
“Ballbreaker” is a favourite, the same way “Flick Of The Switch” is a favourite. It feels rawer and bluesier. Both albums came after massive periods of success in “Highway To Hell/Back In Black/For Those About To Rock” and “The Razors Edge”.
“The Razors Edge” was that popular that it gave the band a 16 year victory lap. In other words it was still selling when this album and others came out, along with the monster known as “Back In Black”.
Released in 1995, it’s album number thirteen based on the Australian releases. Otherwise its number 12 based on the international releases.
The only change to the band line up was the return of Phil Rudd on drums, replacing Chris Slade.
But the producer this time is Rick Rubin although most of the work is credited to Mike Fraser as Co-Producer, engineer and mixer. And many years later, Malcolm Young said it was a mistake to work with Rubin who was absent for a lot of the sessions.
Hard As A Rock
It’s a favourite. I like the clean tone, droning open string riff to start the song and then it explodes into distortion with the Young brothers jamming on a B5 chord.
Cover You In Oil
The walking guitar riff reminds me of “Ice Cream Man” from Van Halen. And while Brian Johnson was hard as a rock in the first song, now he’s asking if he’s allowed to cover someone in oil.
The Furor
I like the single note riff that Malcom plays in the Verse while Angus strums away in the higher register.
And when the Chorus kicks in, I like what Angus plays on the higher register. And the lyrics are simple, “I’m your furor baby”.
Boogie Man
The riff is derivative and the title is derivative of “Night Stalker”. But hey, AC/DC built a career on being derivative.
The Honey Roll
The riffs in this song are virtually unknown but they are as good as anything that came from the “Back In Black” album.
Burnin’ Alive
A simple riff on a lightly distorted electric kicks off the song. And I like how Rudd builds the intro.
Check out the groove on the verse riff.
Hail Caeser
How good does this start off?
It reminds me of all the things I like about AC/DC like “Dirty Deeds”, “Whole Lotta Rosie” and “TNT”.
I said “Hail”.
Love Bomb
I don’t know what kind of a bomb a love bomb is, but its Wikipedia definition has love bombing as an attempt to influence a person by demonstrations of attention and affection.
The Chorus is catchy, but the lead break is my favourite.
Caught With Your Pants Down
I like the Intro. Sleazy.
In the verses, “Whole Lotta Rosie” went around in the 90’s.
And how good are the chromatics in the Chorus.
Whiskey On The Rocks
This song subliminally makes me drinks whiskey.
Ballbreaker
The riff is excellent, iconic, but when the bass of Williams and Rudd kick in, that’s when you know it’s gonna be a great AC/DC song. A perfect song.
In the end, there are no bad songs here or a skippable track. And seeing em play most of this album on the tour, it’s definitely a favorite.
In Australia it went straight to number 1 (as most albums of AC/DC do here), along with Sweden and Finland.
It was a Top 10 album in Austria, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Norway, New Zealand, Switzerland, UK and US.
Certified 3x Platinum in Australia. 2x Platinum in the U.S. Platinum in France and New Zealand. Gold in Austria, Finland, Germany, Switzerland and the U.K.
The Disturbed Record Vault series is almost at an end.
“Music as a Weapon” is a series of concert tours created by Disturbed. All up this tour did the rounds seven different times.
In 2001, the first edition featured Disturbed, Drowning Pool, Adema, Stereomud and Systematic.
In 2003, which is also the tour captured on the CD, it featured Disturbed, Chevelle, Taproot and Unloco.
In 2006, the tour featured Disturbed, Stone Sour, Flyleaf and Nonpoint.
In 2008, the tour came to Australia and New Zealand which I caught. It featured Disturbed, P.O.D., Alter Bridge, Redline and Behind Crimson Eyes.
In 2009, the tour featured a bigger line up, with Disturbed, Killswitch Engage, Lacuna Coil, Chimaira, Suicide Silence, Spineshank, Crooked X, Bury Your Dead, Born of Osiris and After the Burial.
In 2011, the line-up was Disturbed, Korn, Sevendust, In This Moment and StillWell. It’s also the first time the tour had co-headliners with Disturbed and Korn. The Australia and New Zealand edition had Disturbed, Trivium, As I Lay Dying, Forgiven Rival and These Four Walls.
But back to the “Music as a Weapon II”.
It was recorded at The Aragon in Chicago in 2003, and released in 2004.
The DVD also contains Disturbed’s video for their single “Liberate” and it was Disturbed’s last release with bass guitarist Steve Kmak.
On a different note, it was also Unloco’s final release before splitting up. But vocalist Joey Duenas did form a new band called “Anew Revolution” and released two excellent albums called “Rise” in 2008 and “iMerica” in 2010. But that band is also no more.
“Loading the Weapon” (instrumental)
An instrumental track from Disturbed that is not on any album. I love the mood that this track creates.
“Bound”
It then explodes into “Bound” from the “Believe” album.
“Myself”
This CD was my first exposure to Taproot. The live recording didn’t captivate me to listen any further.
“Dehumanized”
It was written and recorded for the “Believe” album, however it didn’t make the final cut. But it was played live during the “Believe” tour and released as a B side to the “Stricken” single from the “Ten Thousand Fists” album, alongside “Hell”.
And it was finally released on “The Lost Children” album.
“Forfeit”
My first exposure to Chevelle and I was instantly a fan. The live recording isn’t the best, but the Tool like grooves into a concise 4 minute song was of interest to me.
“Fade to Black”
From Disturbed.
A Metallica cover. And how good is the whole intro with the acoustic arpeggios and lead break.
“Empty”
My first exposure to Unloco.
“Sumtimes”
Taproot’s other song on the album. It’s like Staind and the track is more accessible than the previous one. But still not interested.
“Darkness”
From the “Believe” album. The piano and acoustic guitar is haunting. Draiman’s vocal delivery is excellent.
“Bruises”
From “Unloco”. This song was in “The Matrix” movies and various video games.
“Prayer”
From the “Believe” album, the fast staccato riffing in the Intro isn’t as powerful as the album version, but I do like the slight increase in tempo which makes the fast staccato riffing even faster.
And Draiman delivers vocally.
“The Red”
David Draiman makes an appearance with Chevelle. Its pitchy especially when Draiman joins in with the harmonies but that’s what performing live is all about.
“Poem”
Song number three from Taproot. The riff sounded interesting and a bit complex, so from this song, I would go on to check out more Taproot eventually.
“Stupify”
From “The Sickness” album, and Peter Loeffler from Chevelle and Joey Duenas from Unloco make an appearance.
In the end, it’s live with no studio overdubs and very different to the live albums I grew up with, (which were basically re-cut in a studio).
I also like how Disturbed put three unreleased songs on this album.
Man, the Scorpions sure know how to cause a bit of controversy with their album covers. Remember “Virgin Killer” or “Lovedrive” and to a lesser extent “Animal Magnetism”. Well, you can add “Pure Instinct” to the list.
And all of this controversy generated an alternative cover, with the Scorpion guys acting like animals..
And the music catalog of Scorpions is all over the place when it comes to streaming services. This album like many others from the Scorpions is not available on streaming services like Spotify, Deezer or Apple, but hey YouTube has it.
So “Pure Instinct” is album thirteen. Released in 1996 it’s basically forgotten.
Klaus Meine is on vocals, Rudolf Schenker on rhythm guitars, Matthias Jabs on lead guitars and Ralph Rieckermann on bass. For drums they used a session player (aka a “Hired Gun”) called Curt Cress.
The main Producer is Erwin Musper with 80s legend Keith Olsen, producing tracks 1 and 7.
“Wild Child”
Produced by Keith Olsen.
Bag pipes play a Celtic like melody before the crunchy guitars of Rudolf Schenker kick in. Its classic Scorpions delivering a kick ass rock song.
Check out the lead breaks from Mattias Jabs especially the outro solo.
And to close out, the bag pipe melody is back in. Musically it’s as good as any hard rock track from the Scorpions.
“But the Best for You”
Klaus Meine wrote the song.
It’s more Bryan Adams in the Intro than the Euro Scorpions Rock and the verses are very heavily influenced by ELP and the song “From The Beginning”.
What is it with that ELP track?
Dokken covered the ELP track a year before on “Dysfunctional”.
The Chorus also has that “You Give Love A Bad Name” vibe.
“Does Anyone Know”
Another Meine composition and its the first ballad on the album.
Another day has just begun Life goes on there’s no return How can I trust anyone When honesty is such a dirty word
A breakdown in a relationship is not easy especially when you’ve been deceived.
The guitar solo from Jabs is excellent, reminding me a bit of a certain UFO guitarist who did time in Scorpions.
“Stone in My Shoe”
The hard rock of Schenker is back and its got that 70’s feel.
“Soul Behind the Face”
The intro remimds of the Uli Jon Roth era with a bit of Neal Schon.
And even though the acoustic guitar is prominent in the verses, i class the song as a rocker.
And Meine’s lyrics are better here, questioning who he’s real friends are.
And What a Chorus!.
“Oh Girl (I Wanna Be with You)”
A mix of “No One Like You” and “Passion Rules the Game”.
“When You Came into My Life”
A ballad written by Meine and Schenker along with Titiek Puspa and James F. Sundah.
The intro arpeggios remind me of something, but I cant remember what.
The acoustic lead break by Jabs is brief.
“Where the River Flows”
I thought of Collective Soul when I saw this title, even though their version came after. A rock song but with a strummed acoustic as the main focal point.
Under suburban skies Where life is bleeding Where concrete skies are grey There’s plenty of room for dreaming
My hometown has sure changed. Suburbia has moved from the house into the apartment which goes up many levels.
“Time Will Call Your Name”
It’s like a long lost cut from Led Zep III.
“You and I”
A boring ballad to me but it got played live.
“Are You the One?”
A ballad to close the album with.
Skip.
And the album was a Top 10 album in Germany and Finland. It was also a Top 20 album in France, Switzerland and Austria.
It was also certified Gold in Germany, France and Finland.
In the end, it was a release to keep the Scorpions brand going. But the songs feel dull and uninspired. Other artists who had fame in the 80s ask struggled during this period, unsure of what to write, how to sound and how they fit in. Like when Slayer delivered a Nu-Metal album, you knew as a fan that bands were doing it tough.
Klaus Meine at 48 years of age was still writing about “Wild Child’s” and other irrelevant 80s cliches. But on some songs he showed us that there is a questioning human behind the rock star bravado.
I don’t own it. Between 2016 and 2019, I didn’t buy a lot of music as streaming was becoming king.
Released in 2018 and after the success of “The Sound Of Silence”, it was inevitable that the sound of Disturbed would evolve to include a lot of acoustic guitars.
In the interviews leading up to the release, the guys in the band mentioned that the classic rock music they grew up with, influenced the writing of this album.
And this time around, Kevin Churko is also listed as a songwriter along with the band (like how Mutt Lange was listed as a writer with the bands he worked with) and the song “Uninvited Guest” has Dianne Warren as a co-writer. Yes the “I Don’t Want To Miss a Thing” Dianne.
Are You Ready
A throwback to the first two albums in musical style, lyrics and vocal phrasing with an anthemic Chorus.
No More
It’s got a riff and drum groove that reminds me of “The Beautiful People” from Marylyn Manson.
In the Chorus, if you like Swedish Hard Rock or Euro Hard Rock, then you’ll get your fix here.
A Reason To Fight
One of the first acoustic tracks on the album, about not giving up when the demon inside you wants you to. Not a favorite.
In Another Time
The start feels poppy, but then a “Kashmir” like riff kicks in.
The way the verses are delivered vocally is more in line with the popular charting songs.
And the Chorus. Huge.
Stronger On Your Own
A drum groove that reminds me of the first album from Imagine Dragons is prominent but the song still sounds like Disturbed with a bit of Shinedown.
Hold On To Memories
A simple strummed progression on the acoustic guitar starts it off, and then a melodic acoustic lead kicks in.
Draiman is hopeful, sending a message to take the ones you love and hold em close, and to make the most of your life.
And the song remains in the acoustic domain throughout, like “A Reason To Fight”.
Saviour Of Nothing
The heavy rock is back.
But the song was pedestrian, until the interlude section from 2.40 got me interested.
Then a lead break started, first with some Digitech Whammy effects and the shred kicked in after.
Watch You Burn
The acoustic guitars are back, more Led Zeppelin like especially the interlude.
The Best Ones Lie
Its back to the Disturbed Hard Rock sound.
Already Gone
Acoustic guitars are back again with a “Stairway To Heaven” like intro.
This is the best of the acoustic guitar songs and the only one that should have been included. The feel of it is almost Country Rock and Draiman’s bass/baritone like delivery is perfect.
Now for the bonus tracks.
The Sound Of Silence (Live with Myles Kennedy)
It’s a great track and Disturbed have done it justice with their re-interpretation.
This Venom
It’s a bonus track, but the Chorus is better than some of the album tracks.
Check out the whole interlude and lead section part.
Are You Ready (Sam DeJong Remix)
It’s an Imagine Dragons song with this remix and I like it.
Uninvited Guest
Another acoustic guitar led song.
Give it a listen just for the orchestra.
And the album at this point in time doesn’t have any certifications. Time will tell if people will keep listening to it. If I had to rank all the albums, this is my least favorite.
Labelled as Nu-Metal. I never understood what that label meant. Even though I hated the “hair metal” tag back in the late 80’s, it was easily understood why the record labels and media outlets labelled bands with that term.
But Nu-Metal always had me confused. To me it’s all just music.
The bands that started to make inroads in the early 2000’s, had the same aggression and rage as a lot of the bands I grew up with. Just because they didn’t have guitar solos, had shorter hair, dressed differently and played syncopated riffs, it didn’t make them that much different.
And the majority of these bands had even bigger arena rock choruses than the bands who made it in the 80’s and still had a level of success without MTV pushing them, which was very different to the 80’s as all the bands then got to a million in sales on the back of the exposure MTV generated.
The vocal tones of singers in the 2000’s were different as well.
Growing up in the 80’s my ears got used to the Bruce Dickinson, Geoff Tate, Sebastian Bach, Ronnie James Dio, Tom Kiefer and David Coverdale style vocals.
And then in the 90’s with the advent of Grunge, Kurt Cobain, Layne Staley and Eddie Vedder (along with others) changed what a vocalist should sound like.
Rob Thomas, Trent Reznor and Jonathan Davis further changed the expectations. And I was like a pariah within my hard rock friends, who hated all of these singers because they didn’t have the range of the metal and hard rock singers of the 80’s.
Back to Adema, the album came out in 2001, but I didn’t hear it until 2003. I have written about them in a Record Vault post, previously.
Adema is Mark Chavez on vocals, Tim Fluckey on lead guitar and keyboards, Mike Ransom on rhythm guitar, Dave DeRoo on bass and Kris Kohls on drums.
Everyone
The Intro riff reminds me of P.O.D and Godsmack.
The Chorus reminds me of Korn. I like how songs do that.
Everyone is the same Quick to point the blame All I know is that life is a struggle
Truth right there.
Blow It Away
So many influences here.
The Intro music reminds me of Godsmack.
In the verses, there is a Nirvana bass feel, with Korn like guitar embellishments.
Lyrically, it’s a nasty song about a relationship gone bad and if you’ve seen American Psycho, you will know what the singer is thinking.
Giving In
The Intro hooks me in, with its combination of Deftones and “Come Undone” from Duran Duran.
And it’s one of my favourite tracks on the album, about giving in to your addictions or giving in to the darkness that loneliness brings due to your addictions.
Freaking Out
The rapped verses have enough melody to keep me interested and the music/feel of the song reminds me of New Order.
The Way You Like It
My second favourite and the flow of the song is great, with a catchy Chorus.
More Linkin Park like.
Close Friends
A bass riff in the verses which reminds me of “Smells Like Teen Spirit”.
Do What You Want To Do
Aggressive song about living the life you want to live.
Skin
Phased out chorused guitars shimmer and glimmer in the verses over a jazz-rock fusion drum groove. Then the Chorus riff kicks in, abrasive, compared to the verses.
Pain Inside
It’s got all the synth electronics that bands were using back in the day.
The chorus gospel effect on the guitars gets me interested and the verse drum and bass groove keeps the momentum going.
Once the power chords come crashing in for the Chorus, I’m sold.
Speculum
The acoustic guitar gets some use but it’s not a ballad.
There’s so many people dying You complain about your situation
Death gives perspective.
Drowning
The intro riff reminds me of Muse.
It’s like a needle in my spine It stings inside Poisons me with time I can’t deal with your lies
Relationships are tough. They could lift you up or bury you.
Trust
It feels like a song from “The Crow” movie with a bit of “Come Undone” by Duran Duran as an influence.
I’m so alone, empty and lost, it’s easier to let you go Time will erode the shame and the fault, it’s easier to let you go
We become focused on achieving something and when we do, we realize we also lost something along the way, like a relationship that you didn’t want to lose.
And that’s the album.
The band was active up to 2009 and then disappeared, only to resurface in 2021 with a new song and possibly a new album.
But it all started here. The debut gave them the valuable rookie card.
It’s the last album I purchased and much later than its release date at a discounted price. At the time I was still endeavouring at keeping my Disturbed collection intact.
So “Immortalized” is the comeback album after the hiatus, released on August 21, 2015 by Reprise Records. It’s also the comeback album for “The Guy”, the Disturbed mascot.
Between “Asylum” and “Immortalized”, there is a five year gap. “The Lost Children” doesn’t count here as it was an album of leftover tracks.
One song defines this album and it’s the cover of “The Sound of Silence” by Simon & Garfunkel. As soon as it was released as a single it went to Platinum, and by November 2017, it was 3x Platinum and right now its getting close to 4x Platinum.
The album itself was certified Platinum in January 2018. So in an era of no sales, Disturbed is still pulling good numbers.
The band members David Draiman (vocals), Dan Donegan (guitar) and Mike Wengren (drums) perform on the album. Bass player John Moyer was not present, due to working with Adrenaline Mob and Art of Anarchy so Donegan did the bass. But Moyer is still pictured in the booklet.
Kevin Churko is producing and his run of certifications continues similar to Olsen and Werman back in the 80s.
The reviews at the time were not kind to the album with sentences like “It won’t change the minds of those who weren’t fans before” or “Immortalized” is fans-only release as it feeds the target audience”.
But hindsight is a wonderful thing and “The Sound Of Silence” for better or for worse brought in a whole new audience.
“The Eye of the Storm” (Intro)
You hear the sound of a vinyl record starting, all dusty and then a demented tremolo effect arpeggio starts, complemented by a guitar lead.
“Immortalized”
The Intro riff is classic Disturbed.
“Secure a legacy that will never die, be immortalized”
What kind of legacy is up to you?
“The Vengeful One”
It reminds me of “Louder Than Hell” from Motley Crue. And I like it.
The drum groove sets the pace and then one of my favourite riffs on the album just explodes the same way it does on “Louder Than Hell”.
Pure head banging bliss.
“The rabid media plays their role / Stoking the flames of war to no surprise / Only too eager to sell their souls / For the apocalypse must be televised”
There are no views for happy moments. Chaos, death and destruction gets people glued to their screens.
“Open Your Eyes”
It’s catchy and easily digestible.
This song has John Feldmann (from the band Goldfinger, plus he has a history of writing and producing other artists like Papa Roach, Black Veil Brides, 5 Seconds Of Summer) and Nick Furlong (another songwriter who has worked with Papa Roach, Good Charlotte, All Time Low, 5 Seconds Of Summer) as co-writers, along with Draiman, Donegan and Wengren.
But regardless of the songwriters, it’s still a Disturbed cut, through and through.
You’re hypnotized, demoralized Believe every line that they sell you Start channelling whatever will remains Discern from what’s fiction and what is true
Open your eyes
People need to read more critically and research different point of views. But with social media being such a massive force of nature, it’s very easy to surround yourself in an echo chamber, hearing the same thing, over and over and over again, until you believe it is true and you refuse to see another point of view, which could be true.
“The Light”
A hard rock song, reminding me of “My Hero” from Foo Fighters in certain sections.
And how good is the vocal melody in the Chorus. Pure AOR Melodic Rock.
Four punch knockout combo right there.
“What Are You Waiting For”
I wasn’t surprised that they had a cut that sounded like Five Finger Death Punch on the album. The track is also co-written with John Feldman.
The lead break has a lot of the Digitech Whammy Pedal effects.
“You’re Mine”
The electronic element is back, then again, Draiman’s side project “Device” did sound like this.
“Who”
The riff is a derivative of “Indestructible” and the gang vocal chants are here.
“Save Our Last Goodbye”
It starts off with a person leaving messages on a phone.
The heavy songs were getting derivative at this point in time although I still enjoy listening to em, just to hear what Draiman does with the vocal melodies, or if there is a guitar lead or an interlude that makes me bang the head.
And this song from 3.07 has this Judas Priest like riff in the Interlude which definitely gets the head banging.
In the last minute, it breaks down to a piano and Draiman’s falsetto before building up again.
By the end of it, the person is still calling the number to leave a message and the number is no longer active.
“Fire It Up”
I feel like they started off with an idea to do a song like “We Will Rock You” but once it went through the Disturbed blender, it ended up sounding like “Fire It Up” and if anything it feels like a Godsmack track, with the lyrical line, “when I fire it up, it feels alright”.
“The Sound of Silence”
My brother was singing this song on the day he died from a brain aneurysm and he’s not even a Disturbed fan, but he heard the song on a TV show and it stuck with him.
And I didn’t really care about this song or this version, but a life experience has changed that.
“Never Wrong”
It’s a throwback to the debut album, with a repeating lyrical line done in the Draiman drawl.
“Who Taught You How to Hate”
A great title.
A long time ago I came across a quote like “a child’s life is like a blank sheet of paper, which every person leaves a mark on”.
So how did that child grow up to hate?
Now for the bonus tracks, “Tyrant”, “Legion Of Monsters” and “The Brave And The Bold”.
“Tyrant”
I like the lead break.
“Legion of Monsters”
Inspired by a Rolling Stone article on the Boston Marathon Bomber. It’s angry and energetic.
“The Brave and the Bold”
I like the Blues Rock riff to start off the song. The Chorus is pure Disturbed and the lead break is excellent as there are a lot of Randy Rhoads type licks chucked in and I like it.
For comeback albums, it was well received and while the reviewers said the album is for hard-core fans only, this album actually grew Disturbed’s fan base.
In Australia, Canada and the U.S, the album went to Number 1. In Austria, Finland, Germany, New Zealand, Sweden, Switzerland and the U.K, it was a Top 10 album. In Belgium, Holland and Portugal it was a Top 20 album.
For certifications, it was certified Platinum in Australia, Canada, Germany, Norway and the U.S. It was certified Gold in Austria, New Zealand, Sweden and the U.K.
The “Immortalized” tour was earning on average $200K in B level cities (using California as a guide, San Diego is classed as a B level city) and about $400K in A Level cities (like Los Angeles) a night.
Good or bad, acoustic guitar songs would become very prominent on the next album “Evolution” released in 2018.
The touring cycle was done and the bad was starting a trek of shows to commemorate “The Sickness” 20 year Anniversary before COVID-19 put a halt to proceedings.
I was reading “Shut Up and Give Me The Mic” and it got me into a Snider mood, so I listened to “Desperado – Bloodied But Unbowed”.
For the uninitiated Desperado also includes Clive Burr (RIP) on drums, Bernie Tormè (RIP) on guitars and Marc Russel on bass.
The project never saw a proper release due to Elektra, pulling the CD from the shelves, two weeks before its release.
Back in the heyday of the record labels, as a musician, your career was in the hands of the record labels. The record company moguls had the power to make or break not only musical careers but the financial lives of individuals.
Vito Bratta is one of the most searched artists on the internet, especially around what he is doing right now. I can’t believe that a talent like Vito, just walked away from it all and stopped writing music.
But he hinted at his departure in past interviews.
In a “Guitar World” interview from July 1991, Vito said that on the “Big Game” record, everyone commented on his playing, but hardly anyone said anything about the songs. And that bothered him.
Brad Tolinski, the person who was conducting the interview mentioned to Vito that it seemed that he made a conscious effort to play differently on “Mane Attraction” and that there are less broken arpeggios and other styling’s that Vito is renowned for.
I remember picking up the Metal Edge magazine from 1988 and seeing an update from Motley Crue. In the pre-Internet era, the only way to get information from our favourite bands was via magazines and MTV.
Metal Edge was happy to report that the band was busy at work on their fifth album and that “Monsterous” is one title they werep considering along with “SSRR” which stands for “Sex, Sex, and Rock ‘N Roll”.
“Some Kind Of Monster” was doing the rounds on free to air TV at the time. Basically, Kirk and Lars are beholden to James Hetfield. That’s the message I got out of the documentary
During the whole “James in rehab” period, Kirk and Lars did nothing and could do nothing. The band was on hold until James was ready.
The King had arrived from Avenged Sevenfold. You can read my review here. And even though the album sounded like other albums, all publicity is good publicity.
De Mont is from Sydney, Australia and is made up of Craig Morrison on vocals, Peter James on keyboards, Terry Mandryk on guitar, Grant Byrne on bass and Rodney Willnet on drums.
Signed to Alberts, who were AC/DC’s Australian label in the early days and George Young was one of the producers and songwriters at the label.
Man, they had some serious promotion behind them.
When Skid Row came to town, De Mont was opening. When Motley Crue hit Australia on the “Dr Feelgood” tour, De Mont was again the lucky band tasked with opening the show.
“Body Language” is the debut studio album released in 1989 on Giant Records.
The album’s style is simply AOR Rock.
Move On You
A fast keyboard synth riff starts the song which reminds me.
Musically, once the guitars kick in, it feels like a Bryan Adams rock cut.
Terry Mandryk is virtually unknown, but he lets loose some excellent guitar work on this, especially in the solo. I read on one of the YouTube videos that he used to be in a metal band based on the Central Coast called “Stark Raven.
I Want Your Body
It was released as a single.
The drum beat to kick it off, reminds of Robert Palmer and his “Addicted To Love” song.
Wild Boy
There is a cool synth lick to start the song off, before all hell breaks loose.
And the lead break from Mandryk is guitar hero worthy.
So Easy
It’s a ballad.
And wait for the lead break by Mandryk. And with each emotive bend, it will have you pulling all the orgasmic faces lead guitar players do.
In My Dreams
Big guitars and synths kick off this song.
And what a Chorus. Excellent.
My favorite song on the album.
Close To The Edge
One of the singles. For some reason I have it on 7 inch single and cassette.
Synth chords kick it off, before the band comes crashing in.
The verses are different, unique and when the Chorus kicks in, it rocks but it felt lacking.
Strange World
A guitar riff dominates the song.
Shake It Up
A skip.
Too Late
A ballad. More pop rock than soft rock.
Sex Attention
The horns make it sound sleazy. It reminds me of a few tracks from the “A Little Aint Enough” album by David Lee Roth.
They released one more album “R.I.P.PED” in 1991 (I just found that out) and then like so many other bands, they disappeared.
According to the bio of Craig Morrison who is an artist in Nashville, a management label dispute led to De Mont disbanding.
destroyerofharmony 