Customer Reviews

A Death-Grip On Yesterday

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I went through and read most of the reviews for this cd and I must say it made me sick. What is wrong with people? A band changes just a bit and they are sellouts. News flash people...if bands didn't change then every album would sound the same.
Now, getting to the cd. Suicide Notes & Butterfly Kisses is the first hardcore album I ever listened to...so naturally when I saw that Atreyu was releasing Death-Grip I was more than excited. This cd is in my opinion the best material they have ever put out. I believe that Atreyu has become more than just another hardcore band, and this album proves it. There is alot more singing than in their previous releases...but who says that's a bad thing. The guitars are alot cleaner sounding and blend together almost flawlessly with the bass. The drums are still as good as ever...if not better. Also, not only does Alex own this cd with his destructive screaming...he has learned to sing as well.
All in all I say anyone that enjoys GOOD music and not the mainstream [...] that gets pumped into your ears by mtv should go buy this cd now. If you think it sucks or Atreyu sold out then you are a complete and total moron and you should just go back to listening to crappy bands like Korn or Mudvayne and continue hating your life.

Stand out tracks:
We Stand Up, The Theft, Untitled Finale, Creature

Atreyu are without a doubt one of the most commercially successful metalcore bands out there, alongside Killswitch Engage and As I Lay Dying. The difference is these guys are trying to expand on their fanbase without worrying about what "scene kids" think. So f*ckin be it, theyre still sounding great. It opens with a mid-tempo song, Creature, a song that proves you dont have to come out of the gates with a fast track right away to get the listener's attention. One of the best songs is the lightest one theyve ever written, The Theft. Alex actually does clean singing in this song which is a first, showing hes got some more confidence. The weakest track is probably the first single, Ex's and Oh's, its got a catchy chorus and not much else. In comparison to the other albums its hard to figure where to put this, they dont mind slowing things down a bit on Deathgrip, and theyre not enslaved to the "must have at least one breakdown in each song" mentality that most metalcore bands fall victim to. It was a logical next step to have more melody on their latest album, so the sell-out cries from some scenesters dont hold much weight.

I think this album is very good, because it has nine songs which is a key element to hooking you in, that way you wont get tired of the sound that there producing on this album. I dont know why people hate when a song is catchy, ex's and oh's is a great song and is unique to the transition of singing to screaming which Atreyu is king of, except this time out Alex sings a bit and Brandon(drummer) screams a bit, opposite the usual formula, what do you expect, if i were part of the band i would do the same thing. That song is awesome and i love the rhythm in the first line where he says: "Cold rust taste, a cruel creeping cold pain, do you understand what i mean, when you feel your sould drop to the floor, like a hole like an open bleeding sore, bled like i bled, wept like i wept", its almost like a tongue twister and sounds cool(genius). All of you Atreyu haters, dont put them down just because they got talent, Alex's scream is unlike others where the rhythm takes alot more talent. I think its harder to belch(deepthroat) his lyrics than most other frontman, the unique rhythm is tremendously catchy and the way he transends from singing now is genius. Listen to songs: "Our Sick Story" and "My Fork In the Road" and read the lyrics. This song is a great song i would dedicate to any ex i had(hate). They provide the energy that most hardcore bands lack, cmon guys its Atreyu, they define the word Hardcore, not metalcore like others, HARDCORE! It carries enough guitar solos to keep the tunes in your head, not too many which is not overdoing it(avenged sevenfold). I still like A7X though, because a true fan appreciates decisions the band makes and stays loyal, and i would'nt put them down like some shallow fans I noticed who reviewed Atreyu. I mean cmon, I was introduced to waken the fallen and suicide notes and butterfly kisses at the same time, Atreyu stayed hardcore while A7X flipped the script. I could distinguish Atreyus sound above the rest, unique(the crimson). My opinion, Trivium = Metalcore, Atreyu = Hardcore. Listen to the difference, i love both bands.
Another good deepthroater i like is frontman from a band called "versus the mirror". My vocals would be gone if i tried it, but talented and catchy once again.

well i must say that this album wasnt anything that i expected. i had heard the first single Ex's and Oh's from Victory Records website and i was shocked to say the least when i heard alex singing instead of screaming for the first time. but as time went on and i listened to it more and more, i found that not only do they sound better then before but they have also evolved into something better. with tracks like creature and my fork in the road, it shows they havent lost there old roots but with songs like the theft, it also shows that they are able to do something new. for me, i think that the theft is the best song the album has to offer. its proves that atreyu dosent have to make something heavy to make a good song. alex can sing as well as scream and i think this song proves that. all and all, i think this album is the best that atreyu has made so far and i hope that whatever they choose to make in the future is as good if not better then a deathgrip on yesterday.

A third album is often a dangerous and important time in a band's career. On one hand, they can start experimenting with and tweaking their sound a little. But, conversely, they have only two albums out so they're still fairly young, and thus probably can't afford a misstep. Atreyu's junior release, "Death Grip On Yesterday," doesn't take them to any new musical territories, but it's nonetheless exceptional and not-at-all disappointing. This Orange County quintet's first disc, "Suicide Notes And Butterfly Kisses," was a fairly aggressive and heavy metalcore record, but 2004's "The Curse" was much more melodic and polished. And now, two years later, "Death Grip On Yesterday" tries to bring the best of both worlds. "The Curse" premiered Atreyu's use of cleanly sung vocals, and it also sold nearly twice as well as their debut, so it's only natural that Atreyu would want to continue using them on future releases. But, unlike "The Curse," there is plenty of metallic riffing here to prevent old-school fans from becoming completely alienated. If you want Atreyu to make an album which recaptures the all out intensity of "Suicide Notes," you'll have to wait a while longer. You might even have to wait forever, because the band has definitely perfected its sound and now seems very comfortable in its musical niche.

"Death Grip" is overproduced and the songwriting sounds somewhat formulaic in spots, but the tunes are very solid. And the whole record is over in nine songs and thirty-two minutes, so you'd be hard pressed to find much filler here. Even obvious attempts at getting radio play, like "Ex's And Oh's," are very tolerable and even infectious. "The Theft," "Our Sick Story (Thus Far)," and "My Fork In The Road (Your Knife In My Back)" are the heaviest songs on here, with thick, churning riffs, pounding, bruising rhythms, mostly angry vocals, and catchy, tuneful choruses. Track six, "Creature," is one song which has heavy music held in check by melodic vocals, and "Your Private War" is a power ballad of sorts with limpid singing almost throughout. Lastly, "Untitled Finale" is one of the album's biggest highpoints, sporting some fantastic hooks and even a couple mazey guitar leads and wailing solos, which are very cool.

"DGOY" won't blow any minds, convert any non-fans, and it certainly won't be heralded by any critics as a landmark or groundbreaking release. But it's still a good album which leaves a favorable and generally satisfying (though not vastly powerful or unique) impression, and it makes the listener want to return to it occasionally in the future. Here's everything you need to know (in a nutshell): Atreyu make catchy, accessible, melodic, smoothed-over metal for the masses, and--whether you choose to believe this or not--this disc proves that they are very good at what they do.

This is prollbally one of the best albums i've bought this year. Alex has one of the most interesting screems i've heard to date, however this album is only 9 tracks long and would be even better if they could have included her portrait in black on this album insted of putting on a soundtrack.

In conclusion i must say that i have been a huge fan of this band since Fractures.

I'm not really a fan of hardcore bands at all and I didn't really take the time to listen to Atreyu until they released this album. I've had this cd for a week now and I have been listening to it over and over and nothing else since I bought it.

It hardly even matters that the album is a little over 30 min long. Every song is golden. It makes me wonder if adding more music to the album to lengthen it would make it worse.

The musicians are extremely talented. I could tell just by listening to the music, but after I watched the "making of the album" that comes with the cd, I really could see this bands talent. Everything is awesome: vocals, drums, guitars, bass. There are two singers. The drummer sings most of the melodies and the lead singer does most of the screaming, with melodies in between. Both singers work together to make great vocals. Same with the guitarists, who work together. In "Exs and Ohs," they switch off in the middle of the guitar solo, Dan playing the first half and Travis playing the second.

The more I listened to this cd, the more I liked it. I havent heard much of their older stuff, but I'll look into it since I love this cd so much. Whatever you want to to call it: hardcore, metalcore...its just great rock music created by great rock musicians.

when i first heard Ex's and Oh's i was severely disappointed and i thought that was the direction that the album was headed towards. it always seems that a band comes out rough and rugged and ends up soft and cuddley. vocals always tone down, guitars always slow down. Ex's and Oh's presented very little of Alex's ability to scream and showed more of him being able to sing, which made me cringe because Brandon is the only one singing and should be the only one providing melodic vocals. i ended up purchasing the album regardless of the single, hoping that i would be wrong and i was was. what really attracted me to Atreyu was originally The Crimson, on The Curse album. that song showed this band had a lot of versatility to portray a certain emotion. Atreyu is gifted in the ability to tell you exactly how they feel. when Underworld: Evolution presented Atreyu with a song, they basically wrapped the theme of the film around the song Her Portrait in Black. Portrait was such a beautiful song and i expected that to set the tone for the record in progress at the time. A Death-Grip on Yesterday shows growth in many areas but also shows a downside. the negative effects of growing as a band and a product, is the eventual downfall of what made them great. melodic hooks, intense anger, energy driven guitar all which are still present but watered down. the growht in the album seems to be the cleaner sound of every shred in notes, every tear in guitar strings, and every slam of the drum pedals. Atreyu's ability to capture emotions is still present, providing a non-stop shot of cocaine induced illusionary world for the listener. Brandon's vocals is something that seems to always round out the rough edges of the Atreyu sound. Alex once again grows from the vocals, providing the same show of growth and energy he did on the Portrait song. this album overall is a downfall in some aspects, but looked at from an overall music lens, they are evolving. i would not use the term change, because change indicates direct and concious determination to become something else. Atreyu evolved as a band, spreading their broken wings to reach a new light.

One listen to the new sh*t, and you realize Atreyu grew up a little bit and left the vampire lyrics in the dust. I think this cd is leaps and bounds abouve the "curse" and on par with SNABK. Overall very solid release! Stay metal \m/\m/

Great Album! The more you listen the better it gets. Very different than past Atreyu rock, but nonetheless very good. This shows that this band is very talented and the doubters are once again "duped." I will not say that this is the better album as I really like "Curse", but it's definitely a must buy and treasure. Not a bad song on this album as all range from 9-10.