Review Summary: that opening scream in dig by mudvayne: the album
"oh yea, this album has DEFINITELY heard mudvayne before. the vocalist has definitely heard mudvayne. and slipknot. definitely. I'd put a mortgage on that sucker right there. *** pastel. *** watercolor. *** art. mortgage. mudvayne. *long prolonged scream*."
- SOYMILKTHIRTEEN
what makes a solid, cathartic artistic expression of anger? hatred? unmitigated violence and physical action/reaction? yea, in the realm of modern heavy music, it can just boil down to your by the numbers downtempo beatdown riff, or just some knocked loose-esque 7 string breakdown, sure. certainly tickles my jimmies most of the time. although, i'd rather say that, in light of this album, a purer form more lies in the confidence of expressing what TRULY has angered you and hurt you (no matter how personal, graphic, disturbing, or otherwise), in such a candid matter that it really can't be avoided by the intake-ee of such art.
entering omerta, this was one of the first things I had to ponder. upon hearing a song like benny boy, (easily the least compelling song off this project, due to its blunderingly straightforward nature) you're immediately hit with some of the better nu-metal rapzzzzzz (6 z's.) you'll ever hear, but the substance of such will catch your ear over anything technique and taste could ever deliver. lyrics about a man sister ***ing, ***ing said sister while the said man licks nut off the sister's lips, her being his slave; it's really quite disturbing upon first take. far from the only time somewhat of a topic appears on this album, "hyperviolence" is absolutely unafraid to approach revenge against people who have wronged the seemingly crazed vocalist of this project.
what a better opportunity to express such, than the opener, "payback". revving up straight into the hard hitting, hard to miss, mudvayne influenced riff fest, the song takes no time at all to revel in all its nu-metal soaked tricks: fast, bludgeoning, near mechanical drum patterns, riffs that would have any recovered slipknot addict bouncing in disturbed nostalgia. along with thin but powerful breakdowns/panic chords ala modern hardcore, beautifully grating and pained harsh vocals, and questionably tasteful rap verses littered all over, this set of tracks becomes painfully apparent that it's a must hear for any smelly nu-metal dweebs that still roam the earth, quick.
over the brief 20 minute run time, omerta touches on the best nu-metal has to offer. whether it's the ear shattering pedal/electronic work littered all over the ep, swashbuckling grooves like on "i luv u" and "benny boy", hyper speed drum patterns on "cidephile", "garbage", and a couple euphoric clean sections littered about, like on the former of the last 2, along with the very end of the title track, "hyperviolence gives you 0 time to regain your guard. it is an audibly painful experience to its core, perpetually bashing you over the head. over and over. with weapons.
until you're dead.
