Presents: Ziltoid the Omniscient

Devin Townsend | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 5, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Inside Out
• ASIN: B000P2A4FY
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #84,318 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Leave it to Devin Townsend, one of the most colorful and prolific characters in the world of heavy metal to come up with such a bizarre and whimsical concept album as Ziltoid The Omniscient.

Synopsis: Ziltoid is an alien from the 4th dimension who has come to Earth where he hovers 5 miles above Qatar in geosynchronous orbit. From there he beams videos, music and words to the populace below. However, Ziltoid has a secret plan - being that he is one dimension above the rest of us, Ziltoid possesses the power to bend time... but to do so requires a very special fuel, black coffee, which is found only one place in the universe... you guessed it - Earth. All hail Ziltoid and his infinity metal! Prepare your finest brew!!!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Hey slacker, wake up!!", June 5, 2007

By 

Murat Batmaz (Istanbul, Turkey) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Presents: Ziltoid the Omniscient (Audio CD)

Something inside me says people reviewing this album will focus more on the concept rather than the music presented on this disc, so I'll leave it up to them. All I will say is that Devin Townsend Presents Ziltoid the Omniscient is a sci-fi tale about a guitar-playing alien who pays a visit to planet Earth. To further investigate the plot, all you need to do is buy the album and read the booklet, which includes all lyrics except for "Hyperdrive", and it also features passages that are not sung/spoken in the songs -- then you should have a fairly solid idea on what the story is about.

For starters, Ziltoid is a solo album in the truest sense. Devin Townsend wrote all songs, recorded, mixed, and engineered everything by himself. He also played all instruments, except the drums which he programmed on the Drumkit From Hell software that Meshuggah's Fredrik Thordendal sent him. Granted the drumming does not sound as organic as, say, Terria, the somewhat industrial beats, juxtaposed with tons of samples, give off an alien-like quality to the songs, which definitely fits the concept of this album. This is also what distinguishes Ziltoid from the earlier Devin Townsend records musically. Other than that, traces of both Synchestra and Accelerated Evolution, the two previous albums, can be detected in some of the songs here. A good dose of aggressiveness and openness of either album turn into pivotal points in the course of the album, depending on the mood intended to portray.

Those who consider Ocean Machine Devin Townsend's unrivaled masterpiece will be pleasantly surprised by tracks like "Hyperdrive", which is defined by clean harmonies, liquidy guitar phrases, and the droning, meditative atmosphere. Also, "Color Your World", at nearly ten minutes, establishes a context in which Devin deftly packs both the harmonic brilliance of Terria and the peaceful, unique aural experience of Ocean Machine. The classically influenced midsection transitions into the Biomech aesthetic so seamlessly that you feel like you're listening to both masterpieces in a single composition. Speaking of seamless transitions, the spoken-like death growls on "Planet Smasher" turn into Devin's trademark confident clean singing in the blink of an eye as well.

"By Your Command" and "Ziltoida Attaxx!!!" both contain Devin's theatrical, less intensified SYL type of growling fused with hilarious lyrical content, and his classic epic arrangements defined by rising synth modulations and furious double bass drum battery. The latter even features an unexpected guitar solo atop a dissonant rhythmic cluster. To balance things out, Devin offers his deepest clean singing to date -- which eerily evokes Dan Swano at his most expressive -- on another mammoth number, "Solar Winds", poised to become many a fan's favourite off of this record, along with "The Greys", a modern take on the sounds of his first solo album. Halfway through the song, heavier guitar accents come in rolling whilst the classical touch of Terria's symphonic quality crops up. This is music with immense impact. Period.

Being a rock-opera kind of thing, there is plenty of narrated sections on most of the tunes, which can be annoying at first. However, after repeated listens, these voice-overs will fade into the background, much like the spoken stuff in the intro of Terria's "Earth Day". Also, the Ocean Machine-like material, which boasts profound ambient passages filled with tidal waves of churning guitar riffage, utilizes Devin's vocals as an extra dimension to the music, rather than a vocalist simply adding his nth melody to an already challenging and well crafted composition. "N9", for instance, is one of these songs. Aside from the heavier Strapping Young Lad-inspired guitar attacks and smashing rhythms, the piece is carried by wonderfully arranged, sweeping melodies distilled into dissonant passages of Middle Eastern textures. Amidst all of this are Devin's otherworldly vocal lines interwoven into the layers. It's simply beautiful.

The first and last tracks serve more as an intro and outro to the album, and track eight, "Omnidimensional Creator", at less than a minute, is more of a precursor to the grandiose "Color Your World". Overall, Ziltoid is a cosmos of sound, which deliberately functions as a genre-crosser whilst retaining Devin Townsend's truly unique songwriting vision.

Considering that Devin has put both the DTB and SYL on hold and stated that he will solely focus on his solo career, hopefully he will put out more albums that continue to shock and please his loyal fan base.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This release is so Omniscient!, June 9, 2007

By 

C. Taylor "Wyld Weasil" (Norwood Massachusetts) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Presents: Ziltoid the Omniscient (Special Ed.) (Audio CD)

Devin Townsend Unleashes his first entirely solo project, playing guitar, bass, keys, and programming drums and giving us vocals as well as the narrative. The cd itself follows a theme of Ziltoid, a 4th dimensional creature who is on a quest to find the ultimate cup of coffee, and if he doesn't...destruction! Ziltoid comes to Earth of all places to find his coffee and a War of the Worlds type event breaks out with Captain Spectacular leading Earth against the Ziltoidian Forces. Each song follows a passage in the story ultimately leading up to the finale "Tall Latte"
Corny Concept aside, after a few listens you begin to understand this is some of Townsend's most brilliant work. To come up with this effort in just 4 months on his own is an enormous task for anyone. The Guitar work is a mix of SYL("Ziltoidia Attacks") with touch of melodic side of DTB ("The Greys", "hyperdrive") featuring solo's throughout the disc. This disc can be described as progressive at times, but nothing really goes too off the wall and self indulgent and most songs come off just as songs rather than just pieces of a story.
The bonus features on the deluxe edition are a welcome bonus for disc 2. The first track is sort of a Ziltoid behind the music which is just off the wall rediculous while the others make for good b sides. The multimedia portion of the disc contains 5 Ziltoid Puppet skits, 3 of which have not been on youtube. The disc also concludes with a 13 minute instructional bit with devin showing you some riffs from his back catalog as well as thoroughly explaining his guitar rig and what each thing does for him, it's very interesting for total Dev nerds like myself.
Overall, this man has consistently delivered amazing product after product and I can assure you this follows in that lineage, and you will not be dissapointed. This is something you're going to want to listen to over and over again.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars More Sardonic, Heavy, Atmospheric Experimentation From Devin, July 2, 2007

By 

Joel Israel "Professional Shark Wrestler" (Cedar City, UT United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Presents: Ziltoid the Omniscient (Audio CD)

I have always enjoyed Devin Townsend's unique musical sensibilities and style, and the latest release from this musical iconoclast is no exception....some might find the kitschy, sardonic sci-fi trappings and storyline of this latest project a bit much, but any fan of "Mystery Science Theater" or Kurt Vonnegut will feel right at home here.

The first completely "solo" project from Devin (although he has always worn many hats both in SYL and DTB, on this release he literally was a one-man show, writing all the lyrics and music, and performing on all instruments, assuming all production roles, etc.), it is different from both his older Strapping Young Lad and Devin Townsend Band projects in that it is more humorous and conceptual thematically, but musically it is very much a continuation of his previous work.

This latest epic from Devin is a campy science-fiction concept album telling the story of an omniscient alien being named Ziltoid who needs a rare substance from Earth in order to be able to bend time and space to his will....and that substance is....coffee. Black. Fun stuff, but not for those who take everything too seriously. I have personally always enjoyed Mr. Townsend's quirky sense of humor, which has always been revealed in smaller doses on his previous work, and had fun seeing him fully embrace and run with it on this latest offering. Musically, and for fans of his previous work, this album has some great, heavy, bombastic metal moments as well as sublime, spacy prog-rock interludes, coming off like SYL's "The New Black" meet"Terria" and "Ocean Machine". Recommended!