Customer Reviews

Lives

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have been a somewhat of a Voivod fanatic since I first heard "Killing Technology" way back in 1986, and have followed their progress ever since. With "Lives" being their first full-length official live release, I was anxious to get my hands on the record for the sheer excitement of hearing the current power-trio lineup of Voivod belting out classics such as "Nuclear War", "Tribal Convictions", and "Ravenous Medicine". On that level, this disc does not disapoint.

The first four tracks, "Insect" through "Nuclear War" are amazing, with a good quality recording and great track selections. In fact, the recording of these tracks is so crisp, that they almost sound like alternate studio recordings. The last three tracks (I have the import digi-pack and therefore am missing the the bonus tracks), "Ravenous Medicine", "Voivod", and the Venom cover "In League with Satan" are great also. These recordings are much more raw than the first four tracks and maintain a great live feel to them. I am even going to go as far as to say Eric's singing on "Voivod" is so blistering that it rivals the original recording in intensity. For these tracks alone the disc is well worth purchasing.

It is in the middle of this disc, from the tracks "Planet Hell" through "Cosmic Conspiracy" that the quality of the recording takes a considerable dip. The unfortunate mix of these songs is somewhat muddy to the point that it takes away from the energy of the live performance. I also believe that the album feels a little "Negatron" heavy and that I would have enjoyed the disc more if Voivod's amazingly diverse catalog of albums were better represented here.

Alas, "Lives" is a great record and I myself will probably purchase the domestic release just for the bonus tracks. If you are a die-hard Voivodian such as myself, you will love this record. Recommended!

Suggestion: A volume 2 of "Lives" would be really complete this release and make myself, and others, I would assume, very very happy.

I was sort of amazed at how decent this CD turned out to be.Maybe it's just that I am SO used to seeing Voivod as a band with former vocalist Denis Belanger to front them.I've always thought of Voivod to be 'technical thrash'.My copy of this disc has eleven tracks and runs right at the one hour mark.Heard there's a later pressing out with a couple of bonus cuts added.Great!Really liked hearing the older material,like "Nuclear War","Tribal Convictions","Ravenous Medicine" and the band's namesake "Voivod".Some of the newer stuff like "Planet Hell" and "Negatron" are alright.Line-up:Eric Forrest-bass&vocals,Denis D'Amour-guitar and Michael Langevin.An okay find.

This live album was supposedly recorded in Sweden before or after the van accident in which Eric Forrest was injured in. This is the only official live album Voivod has ever released. This live recording is not their best effort in recording their live shows. This recording has very similar mix as the ones appered on 'Negatron', 'Phobos' and 'Kronik'. True Voivodians would be disapointed and would not appreciate how Eric Forrest sang on the older Voivod songs such as "Tribal Conviction", "Nuclear War", "Ravenous Medicine", "Voivod" and "The Prow". After Eric Forrest recovered from the accident in circa 2000, he later sued Piggy and Away for no apparent reason over the accident. He left the band in 2001. The band disbanded for a short period of time from there.

Not real fond of Snake's replacement. The return of Belanger and addition of Newsted gave me renewed interest in this band and I can't get enough. Musically, "Lives" is not too bad, but Forrest is terrible.

Voivod are a band that should be able to deliver a highly destructive, intense and moving live document of their vast and varied history. Sadly, Voivod have decided to release a weak (though often entertaining) collection of Voi-metal that falls short of the high expectations we have come to appreciate. Sure, Eric Forrest is a good musician and covers the old songs well, but something here is missing. The band are tight...almost tight to the point of being stiff. The production is flattened and odd and the record doesn't place you in the front of row of the crowd as a concert recording should do. Even the booklet is devoid of effort...it makes you wonder what contract clause this record was made to fufill. It's Voivod so it's solid...but solid from a band that is often great ranks as a vast dissapointment despite it's momentary enjoyability.

The band runs through some classics such as "Tribal Convictions" and "Ravenous Medicine" alongside newer material like the classic "Nanoman". The record is too oriented to obscure new songs that really don't match up to the older classics to feel complete unfortunatly. The bands deep back catalog is barely touched upon. While these songs are all reasonaly good - the record falls a bit flat when only a handful of the songs being those that the common Voivod fanatic such as myself would have loved to hear new versions of.

Voivod will please with this, simply because it matches a certain standard of skill and class that only Voivod could reach at their worst. Unfortunatly, the record is also quite dull in many respects. As a Voivod fanatic the cover of "In League With Satan" was enough reason to buy this...but don't be expecting something with the firepower commonly expected from the Voivod machine.

Meh...