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Destroyer Destroyer is:
Jamie Schnetzler- Vocals
Corey Ray- Guitar
Lucas McCray- Bass
Noah Taylor- Drums
Mike Franklin- Guitar
Let's just get this straight from the get go, Destroyer Destroyer do not give a *** what so ever. They take mathcore, grindcore, sludge and fuse them together into a seamless mix that seems to defy musical structure; ignoring any typical sense of tempo or rhythm. The best way to describe Littered With Arrows is absolute chaos; the bleak cacophony of being thrown into an endless abyss. Take War From A Harlots Mouth's MMX and tear it all apart, just re-arrange it into the most chaotic and unrecognizable mess. There is seemingly almost no structure to the music but it’s highly calculated chaos; from disjointed rhythms to stop on a dime tempo changes. But even in all the chaos the band very intelligently knows what they are doing. Heavily down-tuned low end riffs are matched right against technical fretboard flourishes of dissonance seamlessly. The drums kick you in the face with heavy double bass galloping and blast beats with the crashing of cymbals surrounding you in the swirling void. Jamie's vocals are mostly a lyrically unintelligible high end shrieking similar to that of The Sawtooth Grin and sometimes a good n' hearty low end growl. The ultra high end screaming is either gonna make it or break it for most people, it's very abrasive as is the music. The flow of the music is hard to describe, it’s just all over the place going from ultra-fast rhythms to slow and pummeling low-end riffs, sometimes in an instant. The music is written in an almost free-jazz type way with very few repeating parts and a constant ebb and flow. While there are some slower chugging parts they never end up being anything resembling a typical breakdown.
To be honest it's really hard describing Destroyer Destroyer's music because there's so much going on that it's impact on you is so intense that it's nearly indescribable and at times hard to keep track of because of it's fast pace. Each song works together to form a singular piece of music that cannot be divided or taken apart, tracks change often seamlessly and unnoticeable. The music they create is absolutely punishing and enthralling; tossing you back and forth like a rag doll with an atmosphere that is at times hauntingly beautiful. Such as the eerie post-rock influenced instrumental 'Off The Beaten Path'. Brought from their first EP is the songs 'Dead Weight', Horse Drawn' and 'Error', which haven't been changed much but have a better production this time around and fit nicely in the mix. The highlight of the first half of the album is 'We've Been Had'. A 4 minute barrage, that smothers you with crushing riffs and jangly guitar leads between the sludgy low-end chugs. The album changes pace with the slower dirge that is the 5 minute 'Number Cruncher'. It is the only true standout track because of it's sludgier, less chaotic nature; giving the listener a chance to breathe before the final barrage.
One would wonder how this impossibly chaotic and abrasive music could be listenable, but honestly there is something charming and really enjoyable about Littered With Arrows. The music definitely has a very original sound for mathcore and even for music in general, it clearly does not give a *** for standards or rules. There definitely isn't anything nice about this album though, if you want melody please go someplace else. Littered With Arrows just wants to pummel your ear drums in the most unpredictable ways. The band stood out among it's peers avoiding all the typical gimmicks of 'white belt' grind of the era. No silly samples, no overly done silly song names; just balls to the wall and in your face riff barrages. They were certainly an enigma within the tech-grind scene in the mid 2000's, probably scaring the *** out of innocent scenesters who just wanted to see Heavy Heavy Low Low in and around their hometown of Oklahoma City. Destroyer Destroyer may be long gone now but they managed to create a very original, challenging, and excellent piece of math/grind/sludge with Littered With Arrows; one that sadly flew by many unnoticed.
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I've only heard "The Feeling Is Mutual" on their old myspace, so needless to say this was quite a while back when I was lowly
high schooler. It's the only song I heard, but it was really good- that impactive intro is all I remember.
Good review though, man. POS'd. It's been a while since I've listened to stuff like this and should probably check it out for the
sake of nostalgia.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Thanks @Paperback. Yeah I just got back into these guys and The Great Redneck Hope and they're better than I remember.
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I've heard of the The Great Redneck Hope, but never really listened to it. I had friends who were really into grindcore and stuff like that and introduced me to bands like Robinson, The Red Chord, The Locust, Daughters, and Some Girls. I was never too big on grind bands myself but I do enjoy the bands that I mentioned. Especially Daughters who kind of grew into their own sound later on. Anyway good review, mate.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Word. Yeah the last two Daughters albums were so cool. Marshall from Daughter's old band As The Sun Sets first album is really amazing stuff, I highly suggest checking it if you can still grind at all.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
I used to love this band.
Also, Alexis was in As The Sun Sets too bro.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
Well I should say I still love this band, just don't listen to them much anymore for some dumb reason.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
That's actually Alexis' last name @witchrapist. I got back into this recently, lovin it.
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
Oh I'm a retard. I'm pretty sure other people from Daughters were in ATSS, maybe wrong.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
It's cool, I actually edited it to Marshall so it wouldn't sound like a girl and seem confusing lol. Btw, this was review was hard as fuck, it's difficult putting this album into words lol, it's insane.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
Gracias El Capitán! Muy Beuno
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
yeah this album is nuts bru
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
Just went on a Destroyer Destroyer, Tower of Rome, Some Girls, The Great Redneck Hope, Me And Him Call It Us, Curl Up And Die binge last month, so this was a fun read. POS'd.
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Sweet will check this out
Oh and POS
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would I like this
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This album is a complete disaster. I loved it when it first came out. Haven't listened to it in quite some time though.
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
@SharkEthic: Thanks man. All those bands you listened to rule btw.
@Chuck: Do it man, it's awesome. and Thanks.
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Pos here. Great review nizzle.
But you make it sound like its similar the Ion Dissonance early stuff, which i truly disliked. Correct me if im wrong though, i might give this a spin
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
@Pestiferous yeah, you gotta be in a certain mood to put this on
| | | Album Rating: 3.5
the ep's and splits they did are better though, this offers no new material, just some slightly better production and cool interludes that get tired over time
| | | Album Rating: 4.0
TheMoreira@: I personally love early Ion Dissonance but no this isn't anything like this. Look At the recommended by reviewer section, sounds like WFAHM's MMX mixed with The Sawtooth Grin.
@witchxrapist: I like the splits and The Dead Like Us Sleep For A Reason but I think they developed their sound more on Littered With Arrows, they took the chaos to another level imo.
@Pestiferous: This certainly isn't for every, it can be hard for some listeners to even wrap their head around. It's not the best but I really enjoy it.
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