Album Review
Synopsis:
What the fuck?
Review:
As if Daughters couldn’t be any more polarizing after the eleven minute ejaculatory spurt of debut Canada Songs, they go and drop their spazzcore screams in favor of some crazy carnival-esque spoken word vocal style and make their already spastic grind sound more like Mr. Bungle or some crazy off kilter circus/carnival-core.
While their debut was admittedly hard to swallow, it was at least a vitriolic jerky, angular slab of modern post-grindcore, but on Hell Songs, the grind aspect is pretty but replaced by swarming, chaotic dissonance that’s pretty much bereft of metal aggression and more like the kind of background music that plays during an ant or bee documentary on the Discovery Channel.
Hell Songs often comes across like The Dillinger Escape Plan played by autistic children kidnapped by the circus (“The Fuck Whisperer”, “Fiery”, “Recorded Inside a Pyramid”, “First Snake Woman”) and is at times, utterly unlistenable (“Daughters Spelled Wrong”, “Cheers Pricks”, ) and at best a self deprecating display of misplaced skill delivered in spasms of mindless randomness topped off by drunken droning and caterwauling. Only brief musical snippets of their past remain in short bursts (“Providence by Gas Light”, “Hyperventilation System”) before being interrupted by the hideous vocals.
The jump to Hydra Head may have some of you thinking the band has taken an ambient or creative turn for the best, but it could not be farther from the truth as Daughters will find themselves even more unpopular than they were after Canada Songs.
What the fuck?
Review:
As if Daughters couldn’t be any more polarizing after the eleven minute ejaculatory spurt of debut Canada Songs, they go and drop their spazzcore screams in favor of some crazy carnival-esque spoken word vocal style and make their already spastic grind sound more like Mr. Bungle or some crazy off kilter circus/carnival-core.
While their debut was admittedly hard to swallow, it was at least a vitriolic jerky, angular slab of modern post-grindcore, but on Hell Songs, the grind aspect is pretty but replaced by swarming, chaotic dissonance that’s pretty much bereft of metal aggression and more like the kind of background music that plays during an ant or bee documentary on the Discovery Channel.
Hell Songs often comes across like The Dillinger Escape Plan played by autistic children kidnapped by the circus (“The Fuck Whisperer”, “Fiery”, “Recorded Inside a Pyramid”, “First Snake Woman”) and is at times, utterly unlistenable (“Daughters Spelled Wrong”, “Cheers Pricks”, ) and at best a self deprecating display of misplaced skill delivered in spasms of mindless randomness topped off by drunken droning and caterwauling. Only brief musical snippets of their past remain in short bursts (“Providence by Gas Light”, “Hyperventilation System”) before being interrupted by the hideous vocals.
The jump to Hydra Head may have some of you thinking the band has taken an ambient or creative turn for the best, but it could not be farther from the truth as Daughters will find themselves even more unpopular than they were after Canada Songs.
thealmightyjim |
posted on 8/2007 |
Honestly, I like this album much more than Canada Songs. It shows genuine creativity and progression for the band. I can certainly understand if most people can't stand this shit and don't want anything to do with it but I generally have an open mind to music, especially on the extreme side of the spectrum. So I applaud Daughters and especially the singer. He really made this album much more interesting to listen to with the newly altered style.
James |
posted on 8/2006 |
From what i've heard, Hell Songs seems pretty bad-ass. The debate over Daughters' grindcore credentials is a waste of time; Daughers has never claimed to be and has never truly been a grindcore band. They most defintely have a grind influence, mostly coming from the dissonant noise grind of Discordance Axis and Asterisk type stuff, but there's a lot more to their sound than that. Where as Canada Songs definitely leaned much more towards grindcore, the new cd simply showcases more of their "spok rock" or no-wave influence, with the vocals more in the vein of bands like Arab on Radar or DNA. It differs from their previous efforts, but it still rocks pretty damn hard. I'm planning on coppin' this bad boy as soon as I have some dough.
realgrindfan |
posted on 7/2006 |
This album deftinitely isnt commercially oriented and that is the only thing "grindcore" about it. This is noiserock/expermiental noise or something as I am not one to split hairs about genre classification except when people beleive something to be something its not at all. Is slipknot death metal? no. Do they draw some remote influences from actual death metal? yes. Daughters is about as much a grindcore band as slipknot is a death metal band and this is from a person who has been into grind for well over half of the past decade. so put that in your pipe and smoke hipsters!
real grind: agathocles, regurgitate, napalm death, suppository, leng tche, pig destroyer, phobia, agoraphobic nosebleed ...you get the idea
anaturaldisaster |
posted on 7/2006 |
Although this album shouldn't work from a logical perspective, I'm surprised at how much I enjoyed it. Its important to understand that they aren't really a metal or hardcore bands anymore, the vocals changed for a reason - you can't deny, the music is definitely not commercially oriented in the least.
Benjamin |
posted on 7/2006 |
This is a great release, i can understand why it may not appeal to the metal crowd, but the musicianship is great, very skilled. The vocals are great to, and not half as bad as everyone seems to make them out to be. Plus its not just the vocalist who used to be in as the sun sets. This band is as the sun sets, they just decided to change their name about 3 yeaars ago. Just my 2 cents
Captain 
|
posted on 7/2006 |
Spot on description Erik...the sample on Hydrahead's website made me think of teeny clowns piling out of a teeny car and running about like retards. Ridiculous. If the rest of the record sounds like the sample, we might have a contender for this years most irritating release.
|
posted on 7/2006 |
Jam Master |
posted on 7/2006 |
The vocalist used to be in As The Sun Sets....they were kind of cool to see live and their records were always somewhat good ( the vocals being soaked in effects). Live the vocalist had NOTHING. He keeps it up with Daughters. This is hipster shit for assholes. Listen to this if you like your music ironic and lame.
daniel |
posted on 7/2006 |
their 4 song demo and Canada songs were interesting, but this is terrible. The track on their site is one of the worst things I've ever heard. "Hey, let's just make the bass slide up and down while making our guitars sound like ambulances, oh and you just mumble" "cool bro, do my pants look good?"
