Customer Reviews

More Things Change

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

If you're familiar with Machine Head's 'Burn My Eyes' album and if you've read the above title, then that should give you an idea on how 'The More Things Change...' is. If you still can't figure it out, then here's an even clearer explanation: it's a less inspired version of 'Burn My Eyes,' though still solid.

What makes the venerated 'Burn My Eyes' so great is its blend of quiet, slow, melody and loud, fast, aggressive thrash. This album tries to follow in that same vein, but unfortunately it falters a bit. It's mostly that the songs aren't as catchy as they are on its predecessor for whatever reason. My theory is that the guitar riffs are a bit more nu-metal sounding.

What can also be said is that 'The More Things Change...' is more divided. More of the songs either don't possess that same melodic/speed blend of 'Burn My Eyes,' or the song (e.g. 'Violate') presents a false sense of climax building. It's only when the song is near end that it becomes apparent that there isn't much of the aggressive rush as there was in songs such as in 'Burn My Eyes.'

Though not as compentate as its predecessor, this album still isn't bad. There are certainly memorable songs such as 'Spine,' 'The Frontlines,' 'Ten Ton Hammer,' and 'Struck a Nerve' (at least the first half.) If you don't already have 'Burn My Eyes,' then you'd be wise to get that album before considering this. If you're looking for material sort of in the same vein, then this is your best bet, as Machine Head's other releases have drifted too far from their original style (though some of it is still decent.)

After one of the best debut CD's in metal history, Machine Head took 3 years to come out with anything new. Worth the wait? You betcha. 'The More Things Change...' is a more complete and refined album than it's predecessor, but still packs the crushing punch MH came to be known for.

The opener, "Ten Ton Hammer" is yet again a killer opener for Machine Head. A concert staple, this song is just packed to the brim with riffs, drums and pure unadultered heaviness. "Take My Scars" takes off where "TTH" left off with more brutal riffs, excellent chorus and intresting lyrics. "Struck A Nerve" is the highlight for me though. This is just an all out brutal thrash assault on the listener. McClain shreds on the drums as the end hits you with some of the most moshpit friendly guitar work around. Extremely fun, modern thrash metal at its finest. "Bay Of Pigs" is another thrash type song packed with seething anger. Read the lyrics while you listen to this one, it's awesome. "Violate", a slow, brooding song that explodes into a thrash fury by it's 7 minute end. "Blistering" has the most catchy riff on the CD, and an epic closer "Blood of the Zodiac" contains the best lead guitar work from the band.

All in all, there is no bad song on this CD. This is Machine Head's shining moment, the only time they ever put together a complete metal album. Absolutely recommended for any fans of heavy music. You can't deny this recording.

This is a genius CD. This 4 piece from America completely revitalized the thrash scene, considering Metallica had lost that super-hard edge with releasing the "Black" album. Burn My Eyes, their debut, remains the fastest selling debut in Road Runner Records history. This may be even better, depending on your metal tastes - it's more melodic, but still brutally heavy, and at times, even heavier, as demonstrated on the super-fast "Struck A Nerve" and "Bay Of Pigs". For those of you who prefer your metal slower and overall, more brilliant, "Violate" is a 7 and a half minute epic, switching from soothing, to crushing, to absolutely blow-away speed. This may just be the most impressive track you'll hear all month. Still, there are tracks which need minor improvement -"The Frontlines" and "Spine" are slightly too long for their own good, running about a minute too long for their own good. Yet still, this "super f**kin heavy" Ten Ton Hammer ( ;) )CD will blow you away. The dentist drill on Blistering will almost certaintly come as relief. Buy this or face the consequences.

After seeing at least 35 reviews done on this album, I found it to be a daunting task to attempt to say something great about this band and especially this album that hasn't already been said by all the other fanatical followers of this phenomenal aggro-thrash band who has helped pave the way for other great, newer acts such as Pissing Razors, Skinlab and many other Bay area bands. It cannot be denied that this album is one of the top sophomore followups, and that, given the path that Machine Head has taken with 'The Burning Red' and 'Supercharger,' nothing like this album will ever be produced by Machine Head again. But rather than go on and on about just how great these guys are and how influential this album has been for so many people, I decided to do something a bit different - give a couple recommendations for people who really love this band and are looking for other bands with a similar sound and/or feel.
Machine Head, especially on this album, helped to trailblaze what could possibly by considered a new sub-genre or pseudo-genre in the metal scene: aggro-thrash. This kind of metal is defined by its particularly aggressive style, and its penchant to lighten up a little on the speed of the songs in order to simply make the songs heavier by adding crunchier guitar riffs, baselines, and thundering drums with a bigger emphasis on song quality and style rather than breakneck speeds. Don't get me wrong, though, because bands in this style still know how to tear it up like no other when it comes to making lightning fast songs. However, these bands like Machine Head normally truly shine in works where speed is not the essence of the song(s). If you're looking for something along the lines of Machine Head's albums, 'Burn My Eyes' and 'The More Things Change,' but have not been successful in finding music in a similar vein, then I sincerely suggest checking out the following four albums: 1) 'Roots' by Sepultura, 2) 'Disembody: The New Flesh' by Skinlab, 3) 'Fields of Disbelief' by Pissing Razors, and 4) 'The Twisted Rule The Wicked' by Face Down.

The album 'Roots' by Sepultura is in a similar vein because, despite their history as incredible speed metal musicians, Max and Co. decided to slow things down a bit on this album and throw in some more tribal influences creating a truly unique, scorching, memorable album. 'Disembody: The New Flesh' is, in my humble opinion, the best piece of work produced so far by Skinlab. It is full of extremely aggressive music all around, with a variety of tempos and vocal styles (ranging from screaming to more of a somber, hoarse kind of talking). Pissing Razors is an unbelievable aggro-thrash band, with a much more raw sound than the likes of Machine Head. They usually tour with bands like Pro-Pain, but their very close to Machine Head's sound. Their album 'Fields of Disbelief' is considered their masterpiece due to its diversity and all around brutal intensity. However, one of my personal all time favorite albums that I consider to almost top this debut by Machine Head would have to be Face Down's 'The Twisted Rule The Wicked.' From the first track to the last track you're bombarded by just utterly fantastic musicianship, and the mosh pit possibilities created by this album by Face Down are simply beyond words.

If you're a fan of Machine Head, ESPECIALLY Machine Head's first two albums, then I highly suggest checking out the bands and albums mentioned above (Sepultura, Skinlab, Pissing Razors, and Face Down), but above all those bands I very, VERY HIGHLY RECOMMEND checking out Face Down's album 'The Twisted Rule The Wicked.' You will not be disappointed. It's very hard to find, and even Amazon.com has it listed as "Limited Availability." May the Aggro-Thrash live on!

This album is a must buy for every Metal fan out there. Rob's vocals are great, I can not get over the killer guitar playing, I love the lightning fast druming, and there is not a song I don't like. I bought this cd a 2 years ago and I still listen to it almost every day. If you like Machine Head you will also like Skinlab

smart lyrics, loud guitars, booming bass, pulsating bass drums, and crashing cymbals. What is this: 1.)another Puff Daddy rip-off? no I don't think so, 2.)it is an American masterpiece of a band; Machine Head.

Machine Head virtually came out of nowhere with their instant classic debut album "Burn My Eyes". Old time metalheads responded with overwhelming joy to that album, and the band had quite a bit to live up to. In 1997, Machine Head released "The More Things Change...": a great album on it's own, but naturally paled in comparison to the band's brilliant debut. From 1995 on, the music scene became more and more watered down while bands like Pantera and Biohazard refused to change according to the musical climate and trends. While Machine Head eventually went the way of a more nu-metal sound further down the road, this album is still a testament of a once uncompromising band. "Ten Ton Hammer", "Take My Scars", "Down to None", and the epic "Violate" are all memorable tracks that display the band's once patented unending metal assault. It's not "Burn My Eyes" or even "Burning Red", but it's pretty close.

This is how metal should be played, I think this is machine head at its best, it has the best line up, Logan Mader, Robb Flynn, Adam Duce and Dave McClain, every song is very good, and when a solo is needed (Just some tracks have solos) Mr. Mader and Mr. Flynn deliver a good melody, the low end on the Drums is excellent, I think the best drum sound I have ever heard (Except for Slipknot but they are 3 drummers), you can hear every note and every instrument, and the melodic parts of songs like on take my scars are excellent, Ten Ton Hammer is a very heavy song , Struck A Nerve is a very trash sounding song, but Violate, a 7 minute masterpiece is a very bad-ass song that has a very good riff, excellent singing and a very good drum beat, all in all this is Machine Head's best album, a must buy for any metal fan.This is how metal should be played, I think this is machine head at its best, it has the best line up, Logan Mader, Robb Flynn, Adam Duce and Dave McClain, every song is very good, and when a solo is needed (Just some tracks have solos) Mr. Mader and Mr. Flynn deliver a good melody, the low end on the Drums is excellent, I think the best drum sound I have ever heard (Except for Slipknot but they are 3 drummers), you can hear every note and every instrument, and the melodic parts of songs like on take my scars are excellent, Ten Ton Hammer is a very heavy song , Struck A Nerve is a very trash sounding song, but Violate, a 7 minute masterpiece is a very bad-ass song that has a very good riff, excellent singing and a very good drum beat, all in all this is Machine Head's best album, a must buy for any metal fan.

Machine Head's follow up to their debut album, Burn my Eyes isn't any sophomore slump. It's similar to their debut but heavier, darker and overall slower paced. Burn my Eyes was more thrash metal with some groove and power. It sounded a lot like Pantera at times, More Things Change is heavier, more original and it's more in the thrash metal genre. This is their heaviest album to date but than after this they tone their sound down, sell out and become nu-metal. Through the Ashes of Empires was amazing and a return to form after their 2 nu-metal albums but old Machine Head's the best. The Blackening was amazing but it sounded too much like other modern metal bands. It starts of with Ten Ton Hammer, it's one of the slowest songs on the album but it doesn't make it less heavy. Take my Scars is faster and Robert Flynn sounds much better, his clean vocals improved a lot. Overall, this album's more solid than Burn my Eyes and I'd recommend it.

1997's The More Things Change is the unsung hero in Machine Head's discography, never really getting mentioned in list of best albums by magazines or having people ask for it to be played in its entirety live in concert. From what you read, it seems that people mostly got into the band from either their debut Burn My Eyes, the softer and more accessible The Burning Red or else from their universally acclaimed The Blackening album.

The More Things Change may not be as famous as any of those albums, but it is a very strong album in any case. The music is very heavy and groove orientated, with only a slightly darker leaning to the riffs and lyrics changing the formula inherited from its predecessor.

Go to any Machine Head concert in the last decade and you'll find a healthy portion of the material is from The More Things Change; tracks like 'Ten Ton Hammer,' and 'Take My Scars,' are absolutely essential listening for Machine Head fans, but even the less famous material like 'Bay Of Pigs,' and 'Blood Of The Zodiac,' are of the utmost quality.

Everything about this album is good, from the general musical direction to the production and performances. The musicianship is excellent (this is the final album with guitarist Logan Mader and the first album with drummer Dave McClain) Even the artwork and booklet are effective and understated.

This may not be the obvious first port of call for prospective Machine Head fans, but once you get into the band you definitely ought to pick up a copy of The More Things Change, it is a very underrated album and beyond that simply a very good album all round; its very hard, very heavy and almost bleak in atmosphere... I highly recommend it.