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Review Summary: If by "Evolution" they meant becoming completely bland and unmemorable, then an evolution it is. When you name your record Evolution and put out some of the most uninspired and disconnected material of your career, it’s hard not to let out a slight chuckle at the unintentional irony. David Draiman’s inflated ego was in full force with the promotion, with erroneous comparisons to The Black Album which, as shown by the album’s content, is just that: erroneous. Nothing on this album remotely comes close to matching anything Metallica has ever produced; there is more merit to be found within St. Anger than this album.
David Draiman’s lyrics are noticeably worse than in years’ past. The intriguing wordplay showcased on albums prior has been replaced with some of the worst attempts at protest anthems I’ve ever heard; it doesn’t help that his delivery is horrendous. Singing about how “they're done patrolling your mind / when they're searching for you, they will find / a force they aren't ready for” or how there’s “no more defending the lies / behind the never ending war / it's time to make them realize / we will no longer be their whore” is a noble idea, but it requires far more drive; Draiman just sounds disinterested in the concept as a whole. What could have been a respectable enough call to arms against a government working against its people turned into nothing more than a cringeworthy mess.
The production, like a significant chunk of Kevin Churko’s prior work, is painfully sterile; his style can suck whatever livelihood the writing may have had before out of anything. The drums, in their attempt to sound “epic,” end up sounding artificial beyond belief, the bass is drowned out in the mix, and the guitars border on MIDI levels of synthesis. Would it have killed him to produce something in a way that sounds more natural? It seems as such. Aside from the production, the music is Disturbed at their most dull. The volume of by-the-numbers “hard rock” is overwhelming, while the ballads add little of value. Ballads can add a sense of dynamic to an album, but on Evolution, they sound like a manufactured attempt to recreate the success of one of the most well-done covers in their career, “The Sound of Silence”. To simply refer to this as Disturbed’s weakest and move on is an understatement; this is easily one of 2018’s weakest releases. It attempts to send a message, yet sounds like not even the deliverer of said message cared enough. There are zero reasons to return to Evolution. For better or for worse, Disturbed has officially lost me. Sayonara.
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Album Rating: 1.0
great review. I agree with most of this. honestly, this is one of the worst metal recs of 2018 for sure
pos
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Thank you. I honestly had more hope for this record than I should have, but this proves that I probably should have avoided it.
| | | Album Rating: 1.0
just another case of trying to appeal to as many people as possible and losing every single thing that made them appealing in the process.
definitely a running theme this year, it's quite alarming how many bands ive listened to that have done this
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
Which examples would you use? Some albums I liked got horrible reception tbh
| | | Album Rating: 1.0
fuck, 30 seconds to mars, bullet for my valentine, good charlotte, crossfaith and hoobastank to name a few off my head. i know these bands are debatable in quality anyway, but their albums this year have been PAINFUL attempts to capitalise on popular tropes to make the £££$$$$. and each one has failed miserably
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
Heard 3 of those, I like Gravity but hate the other two. I assume you saw my review of Gravity, didn't you?
| | | Album Rating: 1.0
Great review
Album is trash
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oh god that cover art is something to behold
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
It looks like DNA lmao
| | | Album Rating: 1.0
All the singles for this were beyond shit
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
@FearThyEvil: The non-singles are even worse. Just 1 it and move on.
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
and I thought an album couldn’t go lower than And Justice For None...
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
Machine Head, Thirty Seconds to Mars, Hoobastank, and Daughtry already did that for me, I guess with further thought, this actually is worse. I didn't mind the covers on AJFN despite their pointlessness. Even the best moments here are worse than those covers.
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Draiman told Metal Hammer magazine of Evolution, “If I died after this record came out, and this was the end of our legacy, I’d be OK with that. To me, this is our ‘Black Album’.”
He went on to say, “We’ve always used that as a goal — the record that literally every single track on it could be a hit. A record that breaks doors down, that opens up new opportunities to us, that helps you achieve true immortality as an artist.”
Wow. How fucking deluded is Draiman? He’s incredibly out of touch with reality.
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Great review btw. Concise, to the point and entertaining. Pos.
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
LMAO RIGHT??? How the fuck is this ANYWHERE near Black Album levels of legendary? Fuckin' David Dreidel, I swear.
Also, thank you @Lark I appreciate it. Honestly, this is so unreal, how am I not getting negs out the ass like with my ETF review despite that being (imo) better written? maybe it's because people agree with this review, idk.
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
it’s usually because people disagree with what you wrote rather than how it’s written. It’s inevitable, especially when you get into reviewing albums where people already have a strong opinion about it. Just take a look at my Fit For a King review and you’d see the same neg issue haha. Anyway, this review is really good and gets straight to the point, you’re definitely improving with your writing
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
@tyman: Thank you!
I'm debating on tackling a couple of my 5's (one of them being The Sin and the Sentence) or just waiting for some new music to come out for me to tackle, lol.
| | | Album Rating: 1.0
I haven't read it, just gave it a go now, completely disagree lol but solid af reivew as always my man
| | | Album Rating: 1.5
Sounds like Nickelback with Draiman singing
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