Infest ME! Don't Get Away With your Murder. Love/hate ME! Don't Metamorphosize into your demise.
Written: Apr 01 '09 (Updated Apr 01 '09)
Product Rating:
Pros: It's the newest from Papa Roach. It's gotta be good, right?
Cons: Not exactly. There's some good on here, but not "mind-blowingly" so.
The Bottom Line: Metamorphosis is Papa Roach's sixth album. In their long history, something's changed...but it's not for the better. It's for the different, and it's a difference that ultimately diminishes their sound.
ChromeKiller's Full Review: Metamorphosis [PA] by Papa Roach
There's this theory that I've always had. Sooner or later all musical acts change… for the worse. As time evolves, so does the band. Their 'sound' starts to deteriorate many times because they try something so different that things end up badly. Maybe they don't know it. Maybe they do. Maybe they just don't care. Sticking with this new formation could give the bands truest fans an aching sensation. They'll still sell records, or MP3s as you kids refer to them today, and they'll be happy with their money that's coming in. In this kind of scenario, they may end up losing fans as well. Not that it matters to them; they'll just end up acquiring a different set of followers. But, for a band to act this way, blinded by whatever is keeping them from staying as they were instead of how they've "sold out" for another flavor is not something that's admirable by anyone.
Now I'm not saying that this has anything to do with Papa Roach. As a matter of fact, I don't even know why I said it. Perhaps it has to do with the change of time, the change of ways, and the change that these Californian rockers came into when they lost their drummer, Dave Buckner, due to 'personal reasons.' Since his split from the band in the summer of 2008, Papa Roach has been joined by Anthony Palermo, a drummer-for-hire. This is an odd move, considering how Anthony currently drums for a different punk rock band called Pulley. It's kind of as if Papa Roach was in a tight spot. They needed someone to replace Dave, and they needed someone right away it seems. Officially becoming a part of the band full-time now, after having initially been asked to do so part-time, Papa Roach's sixth studio-produced album has changed for something new and different and into what has become their own twist on the band’s being: Metamorphosis.
Papa Roach has been around for quite some time, from their early beginnings in 1993 up to the present when the band has as mentioned lost one of their longtime crew that made them what they are today, or once were. See, in recording their latest album, Metamorphosis, the band indeed has gone through an alteration process, to the point where it's as if the music doesn't speak 'Papa Roach.' What's been so great about this band over the years is that they've always evolved their style. Starting from a rap and nu-metal sound on their first two albums, the band began to experiment more on their third album with what almost sounded like electronic instruments being tuned in with the instruments and both poppy and deep tracks (even though it's not the case). The fourth album distinguished itself completely away from everything else, when its tunage was completely tied into a loud rocking scene. For the fifth album, and the final time that Dave Buckner was still a part of Papa Roach, the band would proceed to record an album that was not only pure rocking out, its track collection was comprised of songs that like on most of their previous albums are distinctive from each other. On this album especially, Papa Roach mastered a very sweet blend between both calmer and harder rock, beginning the album with in-your-face music and mixing it up in between with many more powerful songs that each stand out, and ending on an inspiring orchestral melody. It's their sixth time around when things have soured somewhat.
What's different besides the loss of their drummer? Well, for one, there's a message present in Metamorphosis, and it seems to repeat itself throughout a number of the songs. This album was originally to be titled after the book Days of War, Nights of Love from the lead singer's (Jacoby Shaddix) interest in it, A change away from that, and a change into the new, Metamorphosis definitely takes its name to a literal translation for what the band is trying to do here. A number of the songs on this album are alike. The theme that's present between them emanates from the book that it's apparently based on, Day of War, Nights of Love. The first song, "Days of War" is strictly an instrumental piece. You'd think that the band wouldn't waste one-minute and 25 seconds building up an intro that actually connects directly with the subsequent song, "Change or Die," but they do (if you're listening to each track back-to-back, anyhow). From this, you'd think that it was decided to split the lengthy introduction into two separate songs so that it could be said that Metamorphosis has twelve tracks instead of eleven. Lame! On the other hand, "Change or Die" is actually one of the album's better selections. Carrying a rocking-out anthem that will stir you into the music, this is probably the loudest of all of the songs available on the album that's fortunately accompanied by some catchy lyrics and sounds.
Change or Die:"Change or die, we're looking for the answers of our life, tonight/Are you corrupted by the status quo? The repetition it kills us all..."
Ending on a bad note, or not 'bad' but unnecessary, "Change or Die" technically doesn't last for three-minutes and nineteen seconds. Instead, like a couple of other songs on this album, one new thing that Papa Roach tries on Metamorphosis is coupling the ending moments of a few of their songs with a sound clip. You’ll hear police sirens whirring at the end of "Change or Die" to the last song, "State of Emergency," where leaving off at the 4:19 marker (the song itself lasting with a five-minute and six second duration) there’s a slow-strumming rhythm to accompany some kind of a foreign person rambling across a radio-like broadcast. What purpose these bits serve is unknown and unneeded as it will probably have listeners wanting to skip to the next track prematurely. They're a complete waste of space. Getting back to the somewhat overused thematic of the album, Metamorphosis is based off of the book, Days of War, Nights of Love, and rightly so one song is aptly named "Days of War," another "Nights of Love," another "March out of the Darkness" and yet another is "Into the Light". Usually Papa Roach has named one song after their album in the past, rather than basing an entire motif around its creation. But here it's different, and you'll certainly have some idea about the message being said: light versus darkness. Some of these tracks aren't bad; in fact, "Nights of Love" and "March out of the Darkness" settle back into Papa Roach's place landing a deeper, more passionate relation to its audience (as opposed to heavy rocking). It's just that things could have been better if the band were to instead have each and every single song feel unique, as some do and some do not.
Nights of Love:"Days of war, and the nights of love: Head is on fire and I'm on the run! Dancing with the devil in the midnight sun… I'm falling in love, I'm coming undone!"
The one other distinctive problem with Metamorphosis is that there exist enjoyable rock songs that fans of the band and outsiders probably wouldn't mind tuning into. What doesn't exist, however, is the kind of music that is powerful enough to inspire you, to make you want to listen again and again. Sure, the album's okay for what it's worth. But, its juice level isn't fueling the engine into overdrive any longer. The balance between the tracks seems to weave between being somewhat in your face to backing up and allowing the band to distance itself into the background. The album comes off as more of an alternative/rock style than all-out rock. They used to be all up in your grill, and now Papa Roach has a slight balancing issue that just isn't them. Is this caused by the replacement of the drummer? Is this caused by their transition toward a new evolution for the band? Whatever the cause may be, this isn't the same Papa Roach who used to redefine the rock scene - this doesn't work as well as it once did for them.
Track List:
1. Days of War (1:25) 2. Change or Die (3:19) 3. Hollywood Wh*re (3:54) 4. I Almost Told You That I Loved You (3:11) 5. Lifeline (4:17) 6. Had Enough (4:01) 7. Live This Down (3:36) 8. March out of the Darkness (4:22) 9. Into the Light (3:27) 10. Carry Me (4:26) 11. Nights of Love (5:16) 12. State of Emergency (5:06)
Papa Roach s fifth studio album, Metamorphosis, is a call-to-arms. The multi-platinum, Grammy nominated Northern California quartet has created their ...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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