Customer Reviews

From Bliss to Devastation

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This album, as previously noted, is certainly a turning point for VOD. While I loved Imprint in its' day, I got hold of it on the cusp of getting tired of the constant raging that is hardcore music. So I knew it was good, but couldn't listen to it much. Then I find from Bliss to Devastation, and all of a sudden I'm back into VOD again. It's certainly not as "heavy" if you define that in terms of tempo, amount of screaming, and time swaps. It is a much more mature album, that definitely sets a really tasty dark mood throughout. They took their time making this album, and it shows. For previous fans of VOD who are still very much into the hardcore music, I can understand it being off-putting - it's slower, it has definite melodies throughout, and the guitar lines are full of hooks. This is not Imprint and if you expect it to be you will be disappointed. BUT: If you've felt yourself kind of bored with the hardcore scene of late, and want something a little less raging, and a little more moody - pick up this powerful album.

Vision of Disorder is one of my favorite bands but this is my favorite cd by them. It's not as heavy with the screaming as Imprint or older VoD but its the best. Tim shows his all around singing abilitys on this album. My favorite songs are "Living To Die", "Southbound", and "Pretty Hate." "Pretty Hate" is one of the most interesting songs with a dark side to the lyrics and a grunge style to the sound like Alice In Chains. Of course "Southbound" is my favorite song by VoD ever its got the best beat. If your a big Vision Of Disorder fan you cannot miss out on this CD!

I am happy to see that there are open-minded individuals who gave this album a fair shot. I have to admit, upon first listening a few years ago, I did not. After growing up and realizing one of favorite hardcore bands is no longer what they used to be (nor should they be), I realized the greatness of this album. Brutal, diverse, interesting lyrically, and by far Tim Williams' best vocal performance. He still has one of the most brutal screams in the biz when he wants to unleash it, and frankly it's more devastating in small doses. Unlike Imprint, FBTD isn't heavy for heavy's sake or headache inducing. I would put this album alongside "For the Bleeders" and their self titled as their masterworks.

All right, most people who have follow VOD since they first debuted found this album to be a real disapointment because they completely abandoned their early hardcore punk attitude. I have to say, even though the album is hardcore, it has got to one of the best metal albums I have ever heard, I mean, the song itchin' to bleed is one of the best metal songs out there. I know that this isn't hardcore, but it still [edit]ing rocks. It gets the seal.

-FM

Now this is where Bloodsimple's sound was born. I decided to get this album from Vision of Disorder because it seemed to be the only one where the lead singer isn't just screaming all the time, and it appeared to have a similar sound to Bloodsimple. Upon listening to From Bliss To Devastation, I found these assumptions to be true. However, this album has one big downfall, and that is that it's EXTREMELY REPETITIVE! I could listen to any song from this and go "I guess that was pretty good." And then I'd go on to the next song and go "Huh, what's the difference here?" On to the one after that and go "Huh, what's the difference here?" On to the song after that and go...well, you get the picture. Despite that the whole album, in general, sounds pretty good, I decided to take only four songs from it. It doesn't matter how great a song is, if I keep listening to different variations of the same song over and over, I'm going to get bored of it.

I'm quite niave when it comes to Vision Of Disorder since I only heard of them through Bloodsimple. I kept hearing how VOD was so much better than Bloodsimple so I figured with a recommendation like that I couldn't resist, and From Bliss To Devastaion was the record I ended up getting.

I'll admit the first time I heard From Bliss To Devastation I didn't like it. It wasn't until recently, actually, that I even started to like Tim's singing voice, but once I started liking it through Bloodsimple's release I decided to go back and give this CD another chance. In the long run VOD has become a slight favorite over Bloodsimple. I don't know what it is but this CD has that 'x factor' that Bloodsimple's debut was lacking. Each song sounds completely different from the next and the vocals never sound the same from one song to another.

One thing I like about this band is how they can be heavy without being overly heavy. Living To Die is a good example, it's really a heavy song but they seem to base their playing on Tim's vocals at that moment. Then there's the times when they use sound effects to give the song a different feel than the rest, particularly in Itchin' To Bleed. Sunshine, a personal favorite of mine, has a very good overall message to it, plus it shows Tim's abilities, be it screaming, singing, whatever, he does it well. There's also the chorus-driven tracks such as Downtime Misery where the song thrives during the chorus and isn't as strong throughout the verses. You also have the vocal distortion accompanied by the heavy riffs, like in Overrun, one of the CDs true standouts.

My favorite songs are Living To Die, Sunshine, Downtime Misery, Overrun, and Regurgitate. Not a lot of bad things can be said about this CD, but people will always find something to complain about. Vision Of Disorder is just a band, people are sure to hate them but I'm not finding a thing to not like about them yet.

Vision of Disorder raged out of Boston in 1996 with thier excellent self titled debut album, 5 years later they have now released their fourth album, 'From Bliss to Devestation'. Over those 5 years, Vision of Disorder have matured from a raw hardcore punk band to a very dark and heavy metal band. Sonically heavy and aurally pleasing in both vocal and musical aspects, 'From Bliss to Devestation' is a perfect follow up to the mesmerizing 'For the Bleeders' (with 'For the Bleeders' Vision of Disorder got a lot heavier but kept the essence of hardcore obvious and now they have abandonned their hardcore roots altogether). Most of the time when a band changes styles so drastically it creates a boring and tedious listen, but this is a seriously heavy metal record that proves how talented Vision of Disorder is. It reminds you of Nothingface's (not as drastic) tranistion from 'Pacifier' to 'An Audio Guide to Everyday Atrocity' (two excellent neo-metal albums).

This album vocally goes where Tim Williams has never gone before. He pushes himself very far with the amout of screaming his does on this album, but then goes into his signature melodic sing. Musically this album has whole of a hell of a lot heavier than that of their previous albums. The seemingly thrash inspired guitar riffs make you feel as though someone is tearing you apart. The pounding bass and drums create a great atmosphere around this excellent example of a transfer album. Songs like "On the Table", "Itching to Bleed", and "Without You" stand out on this album of great neo-metal - not to mention the amazing chorus to the title track. My advice: if you are afraid of death metal but still want some heavy music, drop 'Iowa' and pick up this album, you will not be sorry.

2001 saw the eagerly awaited return of two of the best new (not nu) metal bands of recent years, namely Slipknot and SOAD, along with the return of Biohazard, Machine Head and Slayer. However, this album succeeds in being better than any released by those bands in that year. It mixes melody with aggression perfectly, adding Soundgarden and Black Sabbath style grooves to the full on assault of their previous material. There isn't a mediocre track on this album, and it spans a very decent 13 songs over 53 odd minutes, with the track order perfectly judged. From the opening riff of the anthem that is "Living to Die" to the display of Tim Williams amazing vocal talent on "Walking the Line" this album is a classic in the true sence, up there with Burn My Eyes (Machine Head), Master of Puppets (Metallica) and the bands own previous proper studio effort, the mighty Imprint.

Some fans of the old material may not like this as it IS a big change of style, but progression keeps them from retreading their own footsteps and releasing stale material. If you've never heard VOD before, this is definately their most accessible album (Tim Williams choice to sing rather than scream most of the time has a lot to do with this. Not that I dislike it: his scream is the best ever IMO), and comes VERY highly recommended from me. If you like it try Imprint, their superb, VERY heavy 1998 release.

If you're a fan of heavy/industrial metal bands, like Marilyn Manson, Cradle of Filth, Nothingface, or Hatebreed, then meet your new favorite CD and band. It doesn't seem to be to be as hardcore as their earlier releases, but From Bliss to Devestation seems to be VOD's goal to balance their sound out. Hopfully they'll release a fifth one soon.

When it first came out, i couldn't wait to get it. It sold out everywhere where i lived. I'm just sorry i waited as long as i did to get it becuase i had other cd's on my list i was dying to get. Anywho, this cd i think is one of VOD's best. I thought "For The Bleeders" was the best when i got it, but VOD again proves me wrong. Every cd they released just kept getting better and better as they went on. Too bad they broke up, cuase i would of loved to have heard more from them. They formed Bloodsimple in case you didn't know. Williams and i forget the other guy's name from VOD is in that group. Check that cd out as well, Bloodsimple "A Cruel World".

I street teamed for VOD and my sample cd's to hand out had "Living To Die" and "On The Table" on them. I def. loved the song "Living to Die" when i first heard it. It was the 1st song i heard off the cd when it came out on sampler. As usual, my swag disappeared in seconds. This cd is by far one of my fave's of VOD's, w/ "For The Bleeders" coming in 2nd.

I love every song on this cd except for "On The Table" and "Itchin' To Bleed". "On The Table" i just can't get w/ the beat that's on it... it's kinda a boring song to me. "Itchin' To Bleed" is growing on me day by day, and i'm starting to like it, but i love the rest of the cd over these 2 songs. Since i love the whole cd, i'd have to say my most fave songs are: "Living To Die", "Sunshine", "Southbound", "From Bliss To Devastation", and "Regurgitate" as being my stand out tracks. Every song is pretty much hard, but the things i like about "Sunshine" and "From Bliss to Devastation" is they go slow and funky in certain points. "From Bliss..." almost gets bluesy on the guitars. The cd is just really great, i can't really say anything more about it w/o reiterating things i've already said.

It's def. worth paying $20 if you have too.