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Teasers of the full Devin Townsend Epicloud project

This sounds very interesting, not quite as compelling as Addicted, but still very good. I’m really loving the sound of the poppy tracks, especially the ones with Anneke Van Giersbergen.

The Friday Five: July 20, 2012

Galactic Cowboys - “Arrow” (Machine Fish, 1996)

I’ve been wise to their manipulation
So I’ll just plant my feet and never leave

Machine Fish ushered in a simpler, more straight-ahead metal style for the Cowboys after the switch to a new label and the introduction of a new guitarist. Even with so much change, the album has lots of great songs on it. Unfortunately this isn’t among them. Long and drawn-out, this closing track serves only to drag down what otherwise is a fairly heavy and high-energy album. Too bad, because it has some very heartfelt lyrics, and I think it could have been a much stronger song had it been handled a bit differently.

Jars of Clay - “Weighed Down” (Stringtown, 1999)

Our hearts: a bubble maker’s dream

One of my favorite Jars songs from what was originally a fan club exclusive release of a collection of songs recorded live over three separate tours, one of them being a show at the renown Ryman Auditorium featuring The Nashville String Machine.

Toad the Wet Sprocekt - “Nanci” (Dulcinea, 1994)

You bend your words like Uri Geller’s spoons

Jars and Toad were two of my favorite bands in the 90s, so it’s interesting that they appear here back-to-back in this Five. Again, another favorite of mine, especially the acoustic version that appears on the Acoustic Dance Party EP.

Dokken - “Don’t Close Your Eyes” (Tooth and Nail, 1984)

Somebody’s watching me
Is it just a crazy dream?

Not much to say about this one. Typical high-energy “rockin’ with Dokken” tune. I spent more than my fair share of time as a teenager playing air guitar with George Lynch.

Devin Townsend Project - “Hyperdrive!” (Music in Progress, Vol. 2, 2010)

Hooray for love
Hey, I’m only…
Trying to find a new way

Addicted was my first real introduction to Devin Townsend’s music, this song in particular being one of the first I heard when I picked up this Inside Out Music free sampler. I had been barely familiar with him before then due to his association with Steve Vai and an appearance on a Rush tribute album. “Hyperdrive!,” like most of Addicted, is both poppy and heavy with the wall-of-sound production Townsend has become known for, and it features the soaring vocals of the beautiful Anneke van Giersbergen. Nice way to end the week.

We Won’t Be Here Forever

Devin Townsend Project - “Bend It Like Bender”

Devin Townsend is a relatively recent discovery for me, and I have been meaning to post about him for some time now. After playing in several metal bands in high school, this quirky, multi-instrumentalist from Canada got his real start 1993 when he captured the attention of Relativity Records, the label where Joe Satriani got his start, who had offered him a record deal based on a demo tape he had circulated under the name Noisecreep. Relativity introduced Townsend to Steve Vai, who was impressed with his vocal work and offered him the lead vocal spot on his Sex & Religion album and subsequent tour. While touring with Vai, Townsend hooked up with opening act The Wildhearts, with whom he then collaborated and toured through mid-1994.

Townsend became frustrated with what he saw in the music industry at this point. Relativity had dropped him, and after receiving an offer from Roadrunner that was soon overturned by a corporate exec, he landed a deal with Century Media. Hesitant to release an album under his name due to his exposure with Vai, he adopted the pseudonym Strapping Young Lad, which became his flagship project, eventually forming into a full-fledged extreme metal band.

Devin’s creative output is probably rivaled only by Ginger from The Wildhearts. Since that first SYL album, Townsend has produced, written, and released 10 studio albums, 1 EP, 1 live album, and 2 compilations as a solo artist on his independent HevyDevy Records label, in addition to the 5 studio albums, 1 EP, and 2 live albums under the Strapping Young Lad moniker.

Since retiring Strapping Young Lad, Townsend’s current focus has been on a 4-album project under the name Devin Townsend Project, each featuring a different lineup and theme. Two albums, Ki and Addicted!, have been released, and the final two, Deconstruction and Ghost are being mastered and are due to be released in 2011.

Today’s video comes from the 2009 album Addicted! and features—although not quite as extensively as other tracks—the sweet vocals of Anneke van Giersbergen. The wall-of-sound production of this clip is typical of the rest of the album and is a hallmark of Townsend’s sound. The remainder of the album is a bit different from this particular song, but it remains very heavy—although a different kind of heavy—with Devin’s alternately screaming and operatic vocals layered with Anneke’s crystal clear voice soaring over most of the tracks. It’s definitely something to check out.

Enjoy!