Review Summary: Let Freedom ring with a shotgun blast!
Rob Flynn formed this band after leaving Vio-lence following a particularly intense fight between the band and some gang members. Yikes! During this time, he was understandably angry, with his previous stuggles with Vio-lence and all, not to mention some problems with drugs. Despite this, he still wanted to write music, so he wrote songs based on his emotions at the time. Soon afterward, he recruited bassist Adam Duce, guitarist Logan Mader, and drummer Chris Kontos. With Flynn on vocals and sharing guitar duties with Mader, this new band, Machine Head was born. And, despite the popular belief that they got their name from the Deep Purple album of the same name, they simply picked the name because it "sounded cool."
Machine Head is arguably the band that, along with Chaos A.D.-era Sepultura, bridged the gap between Pantera-style grooves and old-school thrash. Call it groove-thrash if you will. Burn My Eyes, their debut LP, is an adrenaline-soaked, brain-damaging, sweaty, and downright vicious slab of metal. If you thought Pantera's Vulgar Display of Power was pissed-off, this gives it a run for it's money. It was unlike anything the metal world had ever seen.
Musically, the album is just fantastic. Flynn and Mader lay down some truly awesome riffs and solos that will stay in your head for a while. Not only this, they display the sheer anger Flynn must have been feeling at the time. The drum work by Kontos (who left soon after the album was released) is excellent. Not only does his style fit the music, many of his fills are part of what truly drive some of the songs especially in songs like "Davidian," "Blood for Blood," and "The Rage to Overcome." The bass guitar by Duce sometimes gets drowned out by the other instruments, but overall does a good job at keeping the rhythm. He also contributes to background vocals, which just adds on to the anger. If anything must be said about Burn My Eyes, it's that it is downright ANGRY! Every riff on every song (especially "Davidian", "Old", "Blood For Blood", and "None but My Own") is so whiplashingly brutal words can't really describe it. Flynn's vocals give off the feeling of someone who has been through Hell and is lashing out at all who have done him wrong. Needless to say, he's a hot contender for the title of "Worlds Most Pissed-Off Man."
Overall, this is probably one of the heaviest albums I have ever heard. There is very little melody to be found anywhere, which might be somewhat off-putting to some people who aren't familier with or used to the genre, but I personally don't care! It also greatly benefits from Colin Richardson's killer production. Raw, edgy, and rough, the production is perfect. If it were more raw or more polished, it would not have the same effect. It is just right. I tried to find something I didn't like about the album, but to no avail. There is no filler whatsoever.
Some have called this their best album, and I can see why. However, I personally think it is their 2nd best, after The Blackening.
Pros:-Terrific Musicianship
-Memorable songs
-Effective, angry vocals
Cons:-Huh?
Favorites:"Davidian", "Old", "A Thousand Lies", "None But My Own", "Blood for Blood"
