The Acacia Strain - Wormwood
Rating
RIYL
WhitechapelEmmure
ABACABB
Release Date
07/20/2010
Label
Prosthetic RecordsTracklist
1. Beast2. The Hills Have Eyes
3. BTM FDR
4. Ramirez
5. Terminated
6. Nightman
7. The Impaler
8. Jonestown
9. Bay of Pigs
10. The Carpathian
11. Unabomber
12. Tactical Nuke
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It's 2010, and Massachusetts' metalcore giants The Acacia Strain have returned with their fifth full length album. Wormwood is another declaration of the group's never-ending animosity toward humanity, expanding on the sound that previous albums have brought to the ears of many angry teenagers. As the band's crowd ages, though, their sound must as well. Wormwood takes pages from 2008's apocalyptic Continent while also dipping into the stagnant wells of deathcore standouts, making this an interesting listen for a longtime fan like myself. The advent of eight string guitars might be enough to hold new fans in for one more album, but will it suffice for listeners that are six years in?
Wormwood begins with an introduction entitled “Beast,” featuring raspy-voiced Jamey Jasta and Daniel Laskiewicz's brand new eight string tuned to a bowel-rumbling F. The song is easily one of the heaviest tracks of 2010, right from the beginning. It ends quickly, though, giving way to the more melodic and just as angry “The Hills Have Eyes”. The scathing attack, aimed toward Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt, was one of the songs released earlier this year on a Japanese split. It has undergone some changes since that release, most notably the updated production job, courtesy of the constantly-booked Zeuss. “BTM FDR” then continues the theme of thunderous grooves coupled with lyrics that expose Vincent Bennett's penchant for carefully crafted beatdown anthems. “Ramirez” is more of the same enjoyable Acacia Strain, notable only for the slightly (and sadly) Emmure-esque guilty pleasure breakdown that it ends with.
Normally I'll continue to break down each song, pointing out moments that stand-out and how the song itself fits into the entire album's theme. With Wormwood, however, you could just as easily re-read the last paragraph, replacing song titles with later songs from the album. Each song harbors at least one moment that makes my groove-dependent jaw drop, but does that make each song worth listening to? If you're a fan of the band, by all means get your hands on this album and give it a chance. If not, you'll be better off listening to an earlier effort. Wormwood catches the group in an awkward phase, supplanting actual progress with new gear and studio magic. While it may be hard to hide the undeniable talent that the band possesses, it certainly isn't hard to see that they've simply hit the “repeat” button too many times this go-around. Music doesn't get much heavier than this, and rarely does it get much angrier, but 2010 is the year to branch out.
--Cody Rogers
Comments
Canada
i like your review very well written... but this cd is awful. every song sounds exactly the same, i couldnt even get thru the whole cd. very disappointing for me. maybe ill give it another listen on a rainy day
Minnesota
I actually thought this was the band's best work so far. It is just plain HEAVY. I don't think they were necessarily shooting for anything more than that and they sure succeeded.
Find me EVERYWHERE:
PA
I think they were shooting to make a metalcore version of Meshuggah's Nothing. Actually, two riffs late in the CD are blatant Catch 33. Impressive? Not anymore.
Stop trying to sound like Meshuggah. It's getting really old.
Music Blog.
Depths blog. (my band)
Illinois
i'm just going to throw this out there: people will hate a band like this no matter what.
it's just the genre...some people like one band and hate another (other people think the exact opposite that you do)
personally, i love acacia strain. i think this is their best album, lyrically and musically. if you know of this band, they hate the metalcore scene. the breakdown at the end of the cd that goes on for 5 minutes is a joke to them. people need to stop taking metalcore so seriously. it's not the best genre musically, but it's fun to listen to if you can put the seriousness aside.
also, i hate to call you out augustburns, but most metalcore songs sound the same. it just depends what the band does to spice up the same riffs that every other band uses.
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Canada
no offense taken, it all comes down to personal taste in the end. and for me this cd was just one big song. im more into music like the contortionist then this.
Illinois
no i totally get what you're saying. i used to be that way too. if it weren't for my friends pushing this shit on me, then i probably would never like this.
last.fm/user/tragedyl0ve
twitter.com/1000cleverlines
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Wisconsin
the endin to hills have eyes is sooo heavy.
this is way better than continent.
Raleigh, NC
I personally see Tactical Nuke as the thematic end to the album, not as a giant breakdown just for the sake of heaviness. That's certainly up for interpretation, though. I didn't think the theme came as full circle as on Continent, so that's why I didn't address it in the review. I just feel like this is pretty mediocre overall, and I think Continent and The Dead Walk both completely blow it away. That said, I still enjoy the songs apart from each other.
West Haven, CT
Some of these songs are pretty heavy for this brand of metal. I can see why people would get into them but I find stuff like this pretty boring.
The Cityscape Burns Brighter By The Hour.
Infinitely Inwards
This makes Continent and dead walk look juvenile to me. No contest in terms of maturity and production level increase. Other elements are speculative subjectivity.
Ever Forthright - Ever Forthright
Fallujah - The Harvest Wombs
The New Law - The Fifty Year Storm
ERRA - Impulse
Aborted - Global Flatline
Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
Crippled Black Phoenix - (Mankind)The Crafty Ape
Illinois
couldn't have put it better myself. that's exactly why i love this album so much more than the old stuff. but don't get me wrong, it's still pretty on par with the old stuff.
last.fm/user/tragedyl0ve
twitter.com/1000cleverlines
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Edmonton, AB
I think this band might actually be too heavy for me.... or something... just can't seem get into it. Which is strange because I actually used to enjoy Emmure, which is a similar style.
Infinitely Inwards
haha....emmure.... they're doin' it wrong.
Ever Forthright - Ever Forthright
Fallujah - The Harvest Wombs
The New Law - The Fifty Year Storm
ERRA - Impulse
Aborted - Global Flatline
Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
Crippled Black Phoenix - (Mankind)The Crafty Ape
Lehigh Valley, PA
But come on guys, this is so BRUTAL!!!!!!!!
Fuck this band and all the brocore d-bags that listen to them. They are BY FAR the most boring band still putting out music right now and this album is their worst.
Infinitely Inwards
Your inherently objective and self determined opinion is always a welcomed fresh breeze of logical thought in the steaming hot desert of impulsive, emotional responses.
Ever Forthright - Ever Forthright
Fallujah - The Harvest Wombs
The New Law - The Fifty Year Storm
ERRA - Impulse
Aborted - Global Flatline
Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
Crippled Black Phoenix - (Mankind)The Crafty Ape
Illinois
haha
last.fm/user/tragedyl0ve
twitter.com/1000cleverlines
1000cleverlines.tumblr.com
Lehigh Valley, PA
Sigh...
San Diego, CA
I liked this, but was a bit disappointed as opposed to their previous two. The silver lining: the production is the best it's been. I know this is much more indicative of what they sound like live, as opposed to the four additional guitar tracks used to layer ambient texture on Continent, but it doesn't stop me from missing that. As far as this type of thing goes, I prefer Legend's Valediction which came out about two months ago...And anyone who was surprised by Bill's one-star rating just hasn't been paying attention ;-)
Too old to bother, too young to give a shit.
Raleigh, NC
Yeah, this is my general feeling, as well.
Infinitely Inwards
Giving Bill a hard time is mine and Rick's job. It's a quota we have to fill at least once a week.
Ever Forthright - Ever Forthright
Fallujah - The Harvest Wombs
The New Law - The Fifty Year Storm
ERRA - Impulse
Aborted - Global Flatline
Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
Crippled Black Phoenix - (Mankind)The Crafty Ape
Lehigh Valley, PA
Wait... what Jake? What are you tryin to say ;-)
Lehigh Valley, PA
oh p.s.
Legend is absolute garbage too!