Customer Reviews

Asylum (Limited Edition)(CD/DVD)

5 star:		(47)
4 star:		(32)
3 star:		(17)
2 star:		(16)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Asylum is every bit as much a Disturbed album as 2008's Indestructible. Disturbed pound through every bit of ASYLUM providing an enjoyable, though not revolutionary effort. The album is cliché metal with strong, anthemic choruses that often namecheck the title of the song for the fan's cohesion sake. The beginning of the album lays better than the end, but that is typical of so many efforts today. I believe part of that is that Disturbed's best, most cutting edge material appears at the forefront. Don't get me wrong, there is nothing here that is bad by any means, but after a while, the album grows a bit "same-y" if you catch my drift.

The album opens up strongly with "Remnants," an instrumental cut that builds in intensity and instrumentation. The grand guitar work here foreshadows what is to be a sick display of guitar solos and unabashedly strong guitar riffs. Title cut "Asylum" follows, proving to be the `cream of the crop' cut of the album opening with a fine bass-driven groove. Often times title cuts disappoint, but "Asylum," much like "Indestructible" from Indestructible proves to be a key listen. The refrain for "Asylum" is well crafted as far as songwriting appeal and the guitar work is jagged and desirable, archetypical of metal. While "Asylum" is by no means the second coming, it is a solid cut and one of the best from this album of the same name.

"The Infection" is equally as alluring as "Asylum" if no moreso. Here frontman David Draiman's vocals are slightly more present and balanced within the production, adding additional clarity to his vocals. A nice production touch here is a second layer of vocals towards the end of the track which further solidifies "The Infection's" star power on Asylum. Cuts "Warrior" and "Another Way To Die" are both equally clever, though not revolutionary, though they fall a shade lower in my opinion in comparison to stronger cuts "Asylum" and "The Infection." "Warrior" like preceding cuts contains strong guitar riffs and a catchy refrain while "Another Way To Die" benefits from a slow introduction followed by the typical driving tempi that characterize Disturbed as a band.

"Never Again" doesn't quite live up to the best of ASYLUM, but it was another standout cut in my mind. Here, slight musical changes (changing meters occasionally) and a solid refrain differentiate this track slightly from others. "The Animal" is not as solid in my mind, but with some key changes in production (an introduction created with synthesizers, a couple of `blue' notes within the guitar, etc.), it is enjoyable despite being flawed. "Crucified" wasn't a favorite either, with a slightly weaker chorus in my mind than other cuts, but the cut ends strong and is by no means bad. "Serpentine" and "My Child" are good, if `Grade B' cuts in my opinion while penultimate cut "Sacrifice," like "Crucified" is merely average. Closing cut "Innocence" restores some of the former greatness of ASYLUM, but doesn't make this `good' album a `great' one.

Overall, Disturbed fans will be pleased with this effort I'm sure. The pounding drums and jagged guitar riffs are much appreciated by all listeners and some of the nuances of this album show some great musicianship on the part of Disturbed. With that said, while the front end of this effort is very strong, the end falls flatter in my eyes and I don't believe that portion of the album would woo new fans by any means. I have no doubt ASYLUM will perform solidly on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart, despite any of its critical flaws. 3 1/2 stars; Solid, though not revolutionary.

This album is definitly the best album since The Sickness. All the other albums were good, but this is by far 2nd in my Disturbed favorites, of course nothing will knock The Sickness out of the number one spot in my mind. Asylum is probably the hardest rocking album they have put out. Insane rifs, drums, and good mixing of vocals by David. Overall 5/5 in my opinion

This is probably Disturbed's best work (I still haven't decided between this and "Indestructible.") Every song on this album is classic Disturbed, just more matured. A lot of the songs are actually very different for them, yet they keep their same sound. Disturbed is one of the only bands that I know of that have only bettered their sound, not completely changed it. That is a sign of true talent. This album experiments, it pulls their signature sound, and it's incredible! This band has always done amazing work. They've been my all-time favorite band since "The Sickness." On this cd, John Moyer, the bassist, has his moments to shine, which is something we haven't heard much of in the past. Dan's guitar layerings are fantastic, along with his solos. Mike's drumming is phenomenal. He's really pushing the envelope with his chops. David's vocals and lyrics are emotional, angry, and best of all, outstanding. I don't think he's ever sounded better. On every song you feel his emotions whether they're anger, hurt, or "animalistic." I really like how almost every hard rock album (Stone Sour, A7X, Disturbed) this year, are all progressions of the bands, and show real emotion, stay true to the band, and they all take you on a journey, Asylum especially.
1./2. - Remnants/Asylum 5/5 - This is a great start to the album. A very different approach, with an instrumental beginning, building into the "Breaking down of the doors, of the 'Asylum.'" The main riff kicks off, leading in to an old-school Disturbed song. The lyrics are perfectly written for this song.
3. The Infection 5/5 - A very different song. It's got different guitar and vocal work. Very melodic, and very fanstastic. It also has one of my favoirite guitar solos on the album.
4. Warrior 4/5 - A straight forward and solid "fight song." The guitar is very punchy, and David gets nice and angry.
5. Another Way to Die 5/5 - Again, a different approach to a song. It starts off slowly moving, so you're not sure where the song will lead, then it kicks in and pulls off some killer riffs and vocal work. I love the vocal harmonies. Though I'm not completely on board with the whole "global warming" issue, it's still very well written, and it makes you think.
6. Never Again 4/5 - The lyrics for this song are outstanding. He wrote perfectly about the haulocaust, and how close the subjet is to him. The only con, is that the music itself is a little repetitive.
7. The Animal 5/5 - This song is very dark, and menacing. It instantly makes you picture a werewolf, even before that subject matter is made obvious. The rhythm is very very catchy.
8. Crucified 5/5 - This song is truly beautiful. You can hear and feel David's emotion very vividly. The chorus is what sets this song apart from others. It's just perfect. The harmonies fit perfectly, and the notes send shivers down your spine everytime. David's vocal range is amazing in this song. Though it's about a girl, it doesn't come off as a sappy love song, as NONE of Disturbed's other relationship songs have. Truly an epic sounding song.
9. Serpentine 5/5 - Another song where they tried something new and succeeded. The intro has fantastically layered guitar work, and the chorus is very well harmonized. I love how the lyrics match the songs melody to a "T."
10. My Child 5/5 - This song is very emotional. You can hear the pain in his voice during the chorus. That is a lot of talent there, to convey your exact emotions wihout over or under-doing it. Great song.
11. Sacrifice 5/5 - This song starts with a "Pantera-style" riff, then bursts into instantly recognizable Disturbed. Another great display of vocals, and the chorus to me, is just fun. The harmonies are outstanding.
12. Innocence 5/5 - A very true, and correct song. He's singing about how flawed our justice system is. It's a very furious song, and it gets yur heart going. The breakdown is menacing, dark, and almost creepy. Amazing end to an epic album.
13??? - But wait...yes, Disturbed covered U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." 5/5 - Not the song itself, but Disturbed's take on it. It's vey well done and David shows his vocals can go anywhere. Great cover song.
The live tracks are live tracks. Their great recordings, but no sense in rating the already very well rated songs.
The DVD: Also amazing. It's a perfect chronicalization of Disturbed's history, and a great gift to the fans. It flows seemlessly, and the Intro sequence is done superbly. I looks like an intro to a actuall epic movie. Very worth it.

Overall, the album is amazing. Full of signature Disturbed, and full of some surprises. Not a single filler, but then again, they've never had fillers. It's definitely their darkest, and even David's vocals have a dark and haunting tone through most of the record. It really bothers me when people say all of their songs sound the same. They have the same sound and style, but they evolve and keep it fresh each time. They just get better and better. But those people don't take the time to actually listen. And the jokes about "Down With The Sickness?" That was 10 years ago. Try giving them a real shot. That song is one of the most influencial and original songs of the past decade, anyway. This album is proof that they are the greatest Hard Rock band ever, and debuting at No.1 for the fourth straight time shows that they're still very relevant and amazing. They improve and mature their sound everytime and thier live show is unbelievable. This album feels like an asylum, because of the emotion the music evokes, the haven that Disturbed is through their music, and how insane it sounds at some points. Very well done. This album is a perfect showing of maturity, talent, and commitment to true hard rock and metal. Disturbed is by far the best. This album is definitely the best of the year for anything music related. Disturbed rules!

But please, read on as to why I am assigning the highest possible rating to an album that, thus far anyway, has been hotly disputed in terms of quality. I am going to explain my reasons the best I can, lest I be labeled a "fanboy" or something equally ridiculous and baseless. (This will be a rather long review and yes, I will be explaining each song, so if that isn't what you want to read by all means move on.) Perhaps I am going deaf in my old age (after all, I am pushing 30) but after having listened to this album all the way through several times in the last two days, I find nothing at all "stale, "generic," or "boring" about it.

In the post-Sickness era, progression has become what Disturbed has been all about. This applies to both their musicianship and their lyrics. The Believe record showed the band slightly expanding on the sound they established two years prior, with lyrics tackling the thorny issues of faith and religion. And how can we forget David Draiman's beautiful melodic singing on cuts such as "Remember," "Awaken," "Mistress," and the closing ballad "Darkness?" Ten Thousand Fists marked the first appearance of solos played by guitarist Dan Donegan, and the album's lyrics took on a very political/social nature. (TTF, as it turns out, has become my least favorite Disturbed album. A handful of great tracks, but too many mediocre ones that felt tacked on.) Indestructible was an even bigger step forward musically with Danny doing even more shredding and the rest of the band stepping up their game as well. Lyrically speaking, the songs were "darker." One need only look to tracks such as "Haunted" and "The Night" for evidence of this, not to mention the single "Inside The Fire" which dealt with the suicide of an ex-girlfriend of David.

All of that brings us to the newly released Asylum. Musically, I would say it is a combination of the best aspects of Believe and Indestructible. David hasn't used this much melody in his vocals since the former, and slight tweaks have been made to the overall sound of the latter. This, I think, has allowed the rhythm section of bassist John Moyer and drummer Mike Wengren to sound more prominent while still letting Danny show off his shredding. And the lyrics? Well, if you thought the material you heard on Indestructible was dark, you haven't heard anything yet.

The album opens with an instrumental called "Remnants," which leads right into the title track. David, in interviews, has explained the word "asylum" as having a double meaning: a place of solace, and a place of loneliness. That duality is made very clear in this song. "The Infection," from what I hear anyway, appears to be a song of the "broken relationship" variety but also one that resolves on a positive note; infection being a metaphor for the chain of relational failures that must be broken. The song features some great and rather long soloing from Donegan.

"Warrior," lyrically speaking, sounds most like the title track from the Indestructible album. Disturbed have always been supportive of the U.S. military, and it is no secret that our soldiers listen to their songs to get pumped up. This appears to be another tribute tune. We've all heard "Another Way To Die," which has infamously become known as "the global warming song" in some circles. Some have suggested that this phenomenon is a sham. Said people do not have science on their side, but that's irrelevant. Disturbed have churned out a hard-hitting song in the vein of something they would have done back in 2000, but with an intelligent message this time around as opposed to "Well here we go, we're droppin' plates!" "Never Again" is, quite clearly, about the Jewish Holocaust and the idiots who deny that it took place. Not many lyricists are ballsy enough to tackle that subject but Mr. Draiman is, and being of Jewish descent the song is obviously of particular importance to him.

"The Animal," lyrically, sounds like something that could have been written about one of those terrible and overrated Twilight Saga movies, but for some reason I doubt that is what the band had in mind. I think Draiman, here, is speaking of that "dark side," if you will, that is in all of us no matter how meek or mild we seem to be upon first impression. "Crucified" is clearly another love-gone-sour song, but a very powerful one at that. I will not hesitate to say that the chorus is one of the absolute BEST ever produced by this band. Those who have had their hearts broken as many times as David appears to have had (which is alluded to in many of his interviews) no doubt think they never will find love, symbolically feeling crucified and dead. "Serpentine" is my vote for best song on the album in all respects. Yet another love/relationship tune, or so it seems, but this time dealing with the dark heart of the person walking away and causing the pain of the other.

"My Child" opens with the sound of a baby crying and deals with the death via miscarriage of a child that David would have been the father to. I am not a parent, but I can't imagine the emotional and mental anguish that someone who loses a child must go through. Some have suggested that this song, due to its topic, be a ballad. That sounds like a good idea on the surface, but I think the lyrics make a better fit for an aggressive song. You can hear a "flatline" sound at the end of the song, which further drives its reality home. If I had to pick a least favorite song on the album, it would have to be "Sacrifice." It's a decent tune, but nothing about it really sticks out to me aside from the "Jekyl into Hyde" reference. But I'm not going to downgrade my rating based on one song. Asylum closes on a rather strong note with "Innocence," a song dealing with the failures and corruption in our justice system which sometimes allow for violent criminals to walk free. A great chorus right up there with the one in "Crucified," and an issue which nine or ten years ago I never thought I'd hear the band write a song about.

All in all, eleven out of twelve tracks which I thoroughly enjoy. That's enough for me to give this album a five. If you can get your hands on a copy of the deluxe edition for a few more bucks, it is well worth it. Not only do you get three bonus tracks (live versions of "Down With The Sickness" and "Stricken," as well as an amazing cover of the U2 classic "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"), but also a 90-minute DVD telling the story of the band from the pre-Disturbed days up to the present time AND lessons on how to play parts of ten songs culled from four of their albums. To top it all off, a double-sided poster is included; one side featuring the album cover, the other guitar and bass tabs for every song on the album. All of this inside very impressive packaging. Get it and you won't regret it.

Okay, so that was much longer than I really wanted it to be, but it is what it is. Feel free to rate my review helpful or not helpful if you want, or to leave whatever comments float your boat. I can assure you none of it will get to me. :-)

Asylum is the Disturbed music you instantly recognize and devour. Disturbed knows their sound and doesn't tread too far from anything other than the razor-sharp chords and David Draiman's punch-you-in-your-face lyrics. But the album doesn't start out like you'd expect. Remnants is an instrumental, not at all Disturbed-like, but a great intro to the title song, Asylum. As Draiman barks "Release me!" we know Disturbed is back.

One of the best songs is Never Again, where Draiman embraces his Jewish roots. It's about the Holocaust, but has lyrics that might as well be spitting into the face of Iran and other enemies of Israel:

You dare to tell me that there never was a Holocaust
You think that history will leave the memory lost
Another Hitler using fear to control
You're gonna fail this time for the world to see

Now only if we can get the Israeli army to listen to this music instead of Kei$ha.

Another treat is Innocence, a typical Disturbed hit which will have you banging your head in seconds. The 'hidden' track comes as a pleasant surprise. It's a cover of U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." This isn't for everyone, but considering the show they just put on, Disturbed deserves to cover another classic, as they create new ones themselves.

Disturbed is five-for-five in their decade of storming the stages, and let's hope for many more.

I've had a soft spot for Disturbed for awhile now. When The Sickness came out and I was in Jr. High, I thought it was fantastic. That was when nu-metal was in its heyday and Disturbed presented their own sound. Almost all of the songs on that CD were instant classics in my book. When Believe came out, it had a few good songs, but it sounded like everything else that was being released at the time. They redeemed themselves with Ten Thousand Fists, and Indestructible was a pretty solid record in its own right. The thing about Asylum is that on my few listenings, I didn't hear but a couple of songs that I thought, 'hey..that's pretty good!'. Instead, I felt the same way I did with Believe. I feel like instead of repeated listenings, this one will get shelved soon. Unlike thew new Avenged Sevenfold record, which I appreciated even more with each listen, I don't feel the same with this record. I still like this band, and will continue to support them in the future, but for now, I just felt really underwhelmed with the record.

As background, I really enjoyed Disturbed's previous albums Believe and Ten Thousand Fists. Indestructible took the best of both of those for an incredible album, so for Asylum I had great expectations.
Asylum falls short. Yes, it has its moments in songs like Animal and Another Way to Die, but there are also a lot of flops here -- My Child and Sacrifice come to mind.

The bottom line is this: if you're thinking about getting the entire album, don't. Download the title track and a couple of the better songs; the rest aren't worth your time.

I'll make this a bit short. Honestly, I didn't expect much from this release from Disturbed, and although I was hoping for something fresh from them, in the back of my mind, I knew it wouldn't happen... And it didn't.

Look, it is a solid album, but there's nothing ground-breaking here, and I think Disturbed has definitely hit their creative plateau, something I think evidenced by the band taking a probable permanent hiatus. Even Indestructible had some pleasurable merits, but, I felt this album was a bit lazy and tired.

was for my grandson for x-mas. he loved it!! was very happy with it.
got here very fast! thanks

when i first got this album i was in love with it. after a few listens through, like everyone has said most of the songs seem boring and blend together with a few exceptions. if you are a disturbed fan you will like it if you liked the last album, but if you have been disappointed with all recent disturbed music, skip this album. personally, with the exception of remnants/asylum, warrior, and a few others, i would rather listen to the sickness. this is still great. the deluxe includes a DVD documentary that also has a "how to" for playing some songs on guitar. good, but not fantastic.