Thrice is back with the first installment of the Alchemy Index, which is their interpretation of Fire and Water. It’s great to hear Thrice experimenting and creating a new sound. At first I felt a little underwhelmed when I listened to this album. I thought it sounded like they had got a little too caught up in the conceptual ideas of the albums, but after really paying attention to what was going on, I started to appreciate it more and more for what they were trying to achieve. I don’t feel like they have completely reached the top of what could be done, but there is also another installment to come. I’m really looking forward to Earth and Air after listening to this album. I think it’s gonna pull the whole idea of the elements together and lift the Alchemy Index up to a level that Thrice hasn’t achieved before.
Fire-
YOU NEED TO HEAR–
-Burn the Fleet (#5) Right when you hear the first chords of this song you know it’s gonna be one that you’ll listen to over and over. It starts of very crunchy, heavy and it melts into this dreamy guitar sound and peaceful vocals. The vocals were interesting because even though it had a dreamy sound, I could hear a firey undertone, seriously, not just because it’s the “Fire” album. Then it kicks back into that crunchy heavy guitar and harder vocals. It’s really an intricate song that will take you a few listens to appreciate every part of it, but you’ll realize the talent after 1 listen.
-Firebreather (#1) The beginning of this song is so creepy. It sounds like a tornado warning and it just makes you feel like you’re in the middle of a disaster. It’s a surprisingly catchy song, not catchy in a POP kinda way. It’s much more subtle. After listening to it, I kept finding myself thinking of this song. It really stuck with me and I don’t find that happening to me much.
IF YOU DON'T HAVE TIME YOU CAN SKIP –
-The Flame Deluge (#6) it’s a shame because Dustin Kensrue’s voice is so full of passion. You can basically hear his voice ripping out of his throat, but it seems to take a back seat to the music in the mix.
Water-
YOU NEED TO HEAR –
-Open Water (#2) Even though this song has some of those computerized, overproduced elements, they seem to work together a lot more and there are more organic elements brough into the mix. It’s a very emotional song and every part is able to portray that.
-Night Diving (#4) – This is the first time on Water that we hear some straight guitar and drums, no synths or computer tracks. There are no vocals, but it’s nice to see that they can conceptualize the element of Water without being watered down or over produced, which seemed to happen sometimes on the other songs.
IF YOU DON'T HAVE TIME YOU CAN SKIP –
-Digital Sea (#1) Again, this is a shame because Kensrue’s voice sounds so amazing. This sound is completely different than the one you hear on The Flame Deluge. It’s so serene and peaceful, but the music can get a little repetitive. It sounded like a lot of computerized over produced parts, which was probably what they were going for, but it’s nice to have all components of the song work together.
(photo credit www.alchemyindex.com)
No comments:
Post a Comment