Devin Townsend - Empath

[Mardoch]

I can't say anything to improve this, so just click and be blown away.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=1n7uvokARQ4

[Nos]

I got to listen to the whole record yesterday, and it was awful. Want to bang my head into the desk awful. None of it makes any sense as he bounces from idea to idea, none of the riffs or melodies are interesting, and there are myriad sections of ambient noise that add nothing. It will wind up being one of the worst records of the year, in my view.

[Mardoch]

That's an unsurprising take from you and I expect to disagree vigorously. We'll see in about a month.

[Harvester]

Is this release for everyone? Hell, no.

Is it for me? Hell, yes.

It's abstract musical art that would make Salvadore Dali jealous. I don't go in looking for something. I just let Devin take me where his mind wants to go off the beaten to fuck path. It's weird. It's wacky. It's infuriating. It's awe-inspiring. It's beautiful. It's euphoric. It's fucked up. It's challenging. It's eccentric. It's wonderful.

And then you get to the second track.

[Nos]

It's abstract musical art that would make Salvadore Dali jealous. I don't go in looking for something. I just let Devin take me where his mind wants to go off the beaten to fuck path. It's weird. It's wacky. It's infuriating. It's awe-inspiring. It's beautiful. It's euphoric. It's fucked up. It's challenging. It's eccentric. It's wonderful.

That's not a bad way of describing it. Myself, I like my music to make sense.

[Sir Exar Kun]

I got to listen to the whole record yesterday, and it was awful. Want to bang my head into the desk awful. None of it makes any sense as he bounces from idea to idea, none of the riffs or melodies are interesting, and there are myriad sections of ambient noise that add nothing. It will wind up being one of the worst records of the year, in my view.

Based on this alone, I expect to love it.

[Chris R]

I got to listen to the whole record yesterday, and it was awful. Want to bang my head into the desk awful. None of it makes any sense as he bounces from idea to idea, none of the riffs or melodies are interesting, and there are myriad sections of ambient noise that add nothing. It will wind up being one of the worst records of the year, in my view.

Based on this alone, I expect to love it.

Pretty much this

[Mardoch]

Second single, Evermore, doesn't hit me quite as hard as Genesis but is still very excellent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zIxPUPWVq8

[Norén]

Love it! Devin at its best.

[outprogged42]

This is one of the most crazy and messed-up stylistically albums that I've ever heard outside of outright avant-garde. It's a little too much so for me at first listen but there are tons of absolutely ingenious moments, the humor is present in spades, the theatrical influences are neat and a rather unexplored area for him, and the once-again very positive and life-affirming lyrical thread is sincerely touching.

Evergrey remains the front-runner but Devy is going to be a strong contender still.

[ToddS]

It's abstract musical art that would make Salvadore Dali jealous. I don't go in looking for something. I just let Devin take me where his mind wants to go off the beaten to fuck path. It's weird. It's wacky. It's infuriating. It's awe-inspiring. It's beautiful. It's euphoric. It's fucked up. It's challenging. It's eccentric. It's wonderful.

That's not a bad way of describing it. Myself, I like my music to make sense.

Make sense is what, paint by the numbers? That gets boring. Gotta shake things up man.
Had to add, I'm looking forward to this even more now.

[Mardoch]

Got mine this weekend and was hoping to listen today but Shit Happened so...hopefully I have time to digest it tomorrow. I'm really antsy to get it in my ears.

[Packgrog]

Stylistically all over the map. Haven't gotten through both discs yet, but thus far loving it.

[Mardoch]

It's surprisingly cohesive for how mad it is. I love it very much.

[outprogged42]

On second listen, this is growing on me further. Definitely a potential AOTY candidate now.

[Chris R]

Checking it out 6his weekend

[sez]

I absolutely love this. It's been ruling my musical world all weekend and shows no hint of stopping.

[sez]

This one has had some crazy staying power for me. Album of the year so far. Is no one else loving the crap out of this?

[Random Axe]

I'm probably missing out, but I've yet to like anything Devin has put out, and there's little chance I'd care for this. I appreciate him as an artist and doing his own thing, that's great. But, much like John Arch, DT is not for me at all. Maybe one day...

[LarryD]

I'm probably missing out, but I've yet to like anything Devin has put out, and there's little chance I'd care for this. I appreciate him as an artist and doing his own thing, that's great. But, much like John Arch, DT is not for me at all. Maybe one day...

*** Funny you say this..... I was never a fan myself - until, the Ziltoid show at the Royal Albert Hall, and the following show which was The Retinal Circus......both are which absolutely fantastic, bar none ..... I saw Ziltoid on You Tube and had to have the bluray. The raw energy that this guy puts out is absolutely amazing. On disc - that is another thing for me. I " think " I like Epicloud, Ghost, but those seem to be different than what he normally does ... I couldn't even get thru the CD of Ziltoid - but I can watch the show daily ......it's just that amazing.

I was watching a vocal coach on You Tube the other night critique Devin's vocal ability and tore down a song he did on the Ziltoid show, and seeing the parts broken down vocally, also shows what a great singer the guy is as well as everything else he does.....

I'm not saying go out and buy everything he has done -- but do yourself a favor, go out on You Tube and watch the Ziltoid show at the Royal Albert Hall and just immerse yourself in this guy and this show, and have a blast without having to think about anything .... feed off the energy, enjoy the visuals, and come away with a feeling that even though he doesn't appeal to everyone, he is just pure genius and rates the utmost respect.....

[elendil]

I like it and don't get the charge that it is too chaotic at all. It's actually pretty catchy. That said, my favorite DT-related album is probably still _Synchestra_. But that's subject to change.

[Sir Exar Kun]

Album of the year so far for me also. This album is absolutely quintessential Devin, taking all the different aspects of his style he has been dissecting individually for years and putting them all back into the blender of insanity to make one cohesive whole. Best comparison is that it sounds like a more mature version of the "Accelerated Evolution" / "Synchestra" era, with a lot of added layers that he could never afford before.

Personally, the bonus disc is lacking compared to his usual bonus material, but the main disc is a masterpiece for sure.

[sez]

For me, it came completely out of left field. Prior to Empath, I'd only heard the one track Devin did off of Ayreon's The Human Experience and Ziltoid. I think due to that (and that I don't like the growlies), I never took him seriously.

Now that I've had a chance to delve into his back catalog a bit, I will say that Empath is different. There are things about his back catalog that I like (vocal harmonies is one of them, so I like his "wall of sound" thing very much), but there's a focus on Empath and a deliberate, optimized use of every tool in his toolbox that doesn't seem to appear anywhere else.

If you haven't, give Empath a chance. Listen to it 2-3 times, and make one of those listens a focused one with the lyrics in front of you.

[sez]

Also, you should see this drum playthrough from Singularity:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kb935JynuhQ

[Stevie WOnder]

Huge Devin fan here but I’m having a hard time getting into it. It’s disjointed alright, hard to latch on melodies. I have to give it a few more spins.

[Mardoch]

I honestly don't understand the "disjointed" claims. Given what the album's about it feels like it flows quite naturally to me. Then again...maybe I'm just touched in the head. Well, I definitely am, but maybe it's the right kind for this album.