dredg - The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion
Rating
RIYL
Minus The BearDeftones
The Mars Volta
Release Date
06/09/2009
Label
IndependentTracklist
1. Pariah2. Drunk Slide
3. Ireland
4. Stamp Of Origin - Pessimistic
5. Lightswitch
6. Gathering Pebbles
7. Information
8. Stamp Of Origin - Ocean Meets Bay
9. Saviour
10. R U O K
11. I Don´t Know
12. Mourning This Morning
13. Stamp Of Origin - Take A Look Around
14. Long Days And Vague Clues
15. Cartoon Showroom
16. Quotes
17. Down To The Cellar
18. Stamp Of Origin - Horizon
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Dredg’s musical conquest has become an ever expanding trip through sound, filled with experimentation and heaping doses of artistic vision. They have fused aspects of prog, metal, pop, jazz, and just about every possible genre one can imagine into an unmistakable sound that’s entirely their own. By doing so, Dredg have become one of the hardest to categorize bands in rock and in turn, one of the most beloved by their legion of fans. Conceptual albums with philosophical tendencies have laid the path for much of their career, and they have managed to do so without becoming overly pretentious or self-absorbed. The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion, their fourth studio album and first for their Ohlone Recordings imprint, is no different with a complex concept that arcs the shape of the record, while still remaining largely accessible and even… (gasp) single friendly. That’s not to say this is a collection of non-related songs, as Dredg have once again delivered a beautiful piece of art that flows with segues, interludes, and uniting tracks that create lush, expansive, and incredibly cohesive music. With this release they have given us a juxtaposition of their previous work, pulling from the artful introspectiveness of El Cielo, the intricate pop rock meanderings of Catch Without Arms and the dense interludes of Leitmotif. Reinvention has always been kind to Dredg, but their roots dig deeper as proven amongst the eighteen tracks that make up this masterpiece.
The album opens with an interesting beginning… childlike carefree scatting on “Pariah”. The song quickly takes off, however, with everything listeners have come to expect from Dredg, incredibly unique rhythms from both the drums and bass, enormous reverb soaked guitars, and beautiful, thoughtful, singing. Gavin Hayes’ voice has always been a highlight of their music, as he is able to sing with such crisp clarity, beauty, passion, and strength that is rarely seen in hard rock circles. They open things with a compressed effect of his voice during the verses that makes the clean sound of the chorus that much more monumental. “Drunk Slide” is the first segue of the album, and bares a strong resemblance to the Leitmotif era. With heavy time shifting drumming and piano from Dredg’s backbone, Dino Campanella, the track fades right into the gorgeous “Ireland.” Hayes’ delivers vocals that are haunting and hypnotic over breakneck rhythms and delightfully shimmering guitars. The hook soars complete with string accompaniment from their fellow Bay Area rockers Judgement Day. The piano on the album is far more prevalent than in past releases, but is used far more as another texture rather than pushed to the forefront.
“Stamp of Origin: Pessimistic” is one of four brief interludes, complete with vocals that sound dreary, dark, and well… pessimistic, before wandering into the organ intro of “Lightswitch”. Mark Engeles’ guitar line rips through the mix in a rare classic rock tone giving the song a rusty and dirty quality. The distorted guitars cut in and out the track before the bridge explodes with heavenly strings and the ethereal vocals, “I won’t quit on you, ever,” grab your attention and thoughts. The rapid sampling and guitar effects of “Gathering Pebbles” are complimented by Drew Roulette’s wide sprawling bass line that seems to accent the rhythm in fleeting but perfect moments. Hayes sings out, “Thankfully I haven’t been taken very seriously,” in complete ironic honesty, as Dredg’s music has been incredibly thought out, analyzed, and is far from being light-hearted. “Information” continues in the vein of Catch Without Arms with guitars that quietly bounce through the atmosphere they create, while Campanella’s drumming holds to a steady pulse until the hook breaks. Gorgeous bubbling harmonics, signature Dredg slide guitar, and intricate cymbal work fill the shifting space that picks up intensity just before the song's end.
“Stamp of Origin: Ocean Meets Bay” is another short interlude of vocals that arc the story of the album before diving headfirst into the power of “Saviour”. Personally, I think this is one of the most standout tracks on the album and a perfect amalgamation of their entire career's work. Opening with a crushingly heavy riff, the song quickly transcends into a dance funk groove thanks to Roulett’s synth bass playing and the washes of reverb and slide guitar. A song of retaliation, revenge, and forgiveness, it is complete with giant, epic, Led Zeppelin drumming, crashing guitar waves, and stunning vocals, before riding out on the same colossal riff it began with. “R U O K?” follows as one of the longer and least enjoyable segues. With robotic computer vocal manipulation reminiscent of OK Computer Radiohead style, the track is calm and peaceful on this instrumental passage before the four part harmony ending leads into “I Don’t Know”. Low bass rumblings mix with angular guitar flourishes that dance and groove together over the complex and catchy rhythm. During the hook that questions both reincarnation and the afterlife, Engeles’ guitar playing is rigid and mesmerizing with incredible contrast for the soulful vocals.
“Mourning This Morning” has another danceable funk quality to it, almost as if Dredg has been attempting to incorporate some Superfly era Curtis Mayfield into their sound. While, in writing, the idea may sound like a disaster, they pull off the task with expert precision, with delicate drum rolls, toy piano, and a deep trance inducing groove. The reverb heavy guitar licks, piano rolls, deep walking bass, and horns add enough texture and grace to please all fans and followers, while expanding their ever growing sound without alienating the core audience. The song ends with some space age tinkering that leads into “Stamp of Origin: Take a Look Around”. Similar to the others, striking vocals accompany an ambient musical passage, leading seamlessly into the next movement of the album, the hard progressive rocking interlude “Long Days and Vague Clues”. After this workout that would make 90’s era King Crimson proud, they gently drift into “Cartoon Showroom,” an upbeat journey with an acoustic guitar layer just below the slide, piano, and ever present reverb. While the song is certainly enjoyable, it is a bit off-putting to hear a Dredg song with no drums. Campanella creates some of the most creative rhythms of our generation, and leaving his drumming out of a track takes a large piece out of the architecture of their complete sound. “Quotes” brings the pace right back up to speed, however, with toppling drums and wandering bass lines that seem to circle the intricate guitar patterns on this stunning journey. The slide guitar storms into a crescendo on this epic piece complete with endearing vocal lines such as, “These drugs will expand us, united we will grow.” The song ends with extended jamming from the band that will bring fans back to “Penguins in the Desert” style density just before “Down to the Cellar” creeps in. Beautifully arranged and masterfully performed this song along with “Stamp of Origin: Horizon” complete the album with a dreamlike voyage that fades into the horizon. With a fourth glorious album for fans to adore, Dredg have provided a multi-dimensional visionary opus that leaves much to be heard and discovered for numerous listens to come.
--Dan Goldin
Comments
Washington, DC
This is an EPIC album.
"Standing still is where we've gone wrong" - The dingees
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Dubuque
But you only gave it 3.5/5?
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PA
Good review!
Music Blog.
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San Jose, CA
It's pretty good but I'd also give it 3.5. It's not GREAT GREAT GREAT, but overall it's pretty solid.
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Ann Arbor, MI
i dig it, i give it a 4
DETH ROK!!!!
Leeds, England
And the felching begins...
Great review, but that RIYL is way off.
This album should really blow up for them. Tracks like Information and Saviour have serious Coldplay/U2 radio potential, but they wont get it :(
Fishers, Indiana
I'm a fan. Big fan. Been loving this for months.
I agree with the radio comments as well.
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PA
Information is played on the radio everyday in Germany...not sure if that'll help! Haha.
Radio stations need to get a hold of "I Don't Know."
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Depths blog. (my band)
Baltimore, MD
back to the dredg I like...flows really well, as is mentioned in the review...and has no songs that I feel I need to skip as I did with Catch Without Arms
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3.5
It's a good record but I expected so much more... It's not even close to "catch without arms" and it is way worst (obviously) than "el cielo". Saviour is completely ridicolous (what the fuck is that horrible bass sound????),the bridge part in information simply brakes the whole feeling of the song,the tracklist is not the best one and there are some songs that can be easily be delated to make the album better....
Green Brook, NJ
this album is alright. nothing too special. seriously, what's up with the riyl's? mars volta? no.
Lehigh Valley, PA
Agreed.
Infinitely Inwards
Phenomenal in almost every way. Dredg cannot fail.
Ever Forthright - Ever Forthright
Fallujah - The Harvest Wombs
The New Law - The Fifty Year Storm
The Mars Volta - Noqtourniqet
Aborted - Global Flatline
Spawn of Possession - Incurso
Crippled Black Phoenix - (Mankind)The Crafty Ape
NJ
its a synth. there have been live videos of that song before.
Go FLYERS Go
Brooklyn, NY
RIYL doesn't mean sounds like...
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PA
LOL @ this being worse than catch without arms?
Simply incorrect.
Music Blog.
Depths blog. (my band)
I know but is horrible anyway...
NJ
oh god yes. i hoped that was a bad cover or a joke when i saw it.
Go FLYERS Go