Prey for Eyes

The Red Chord | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 24, 2007)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Metal Blade
• ASIN: B000S0H0S2
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #197,500 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

About the Artist

The Red Chord engages a sensory onslaught with their new Metal Blade Release Prey for Eyes. A sprawling enigma, the album traverses nightmarish soundscapes with mind-bending time changes, gnashing guitars and schizophrenic vocals. Guitarist Mike "Gunface" Mckenzie couples bludgeoning riffs with haunting chord passages. Brad Fickeisen furiously propels the tracks with demonic double bass drumming as Greg Weeks bolts down a rhythmic freight train. Vocalist Guy Kozowyk is the ringmaster of this sonic horror show. His lyrics delve into the psyches of insane inmates, anarchist recluses and gods with a vengeance for pop music. This is dangerous and thought provoking music that transcends genres. This is Prey for Eyes.

The Red Chord have been crafting intriguing heavy music since their independent debut Fused Together in Revolving Doors in 2002. Combining elements of grindcore, death metal and hardcore, that release established them as one of the premier Massachusetts extreme metal acts. In 2005, Metal Blade released the follow-up Clients, a tortured concept album about mental patients, drug addicts, the homeless and the desperate and downtrodden. While they decimated crowds worldwide touring with the likes of Gwar, High On Fire, Between the Buried and Me, Unearth, Every Time I Die and Hatebreed, as well as stints on OZZfest 2006 and Sounds of the Underground 2005, "Clients" established The Red Chord as innovators in the burgeoning underground metal scene by staying away from the cliché trappings that crippled some of their contemporaries.

In early 2007, the band began constructing Prey for Eyes with producer and engineer Eric Rachel (The Black Dahlia Murder, Atreyu) at Trax East. The record is an immense evolution from Clients. Guy states, "Every song on the new album, for the most part, is a sketch of something that could probably take twenty minutes to explain. It's similar to Clients since every song has a backbone that could've been a story. However, Clients was based on this closed environment where I was working. While writing this album, I was all over the world meeting people. So Prey for Eyes is based on dreams, conversations, books, random instances and occurrences. There was also a lot of different ground that I wanted to cover in terms of these weird, trippy dreamscapes and real crazy shit I've thought of for a long time." In order to tell these tales, Guy has also fine-tuned his voice like a weapon, destroying with an intelligible, distinct scream.

Heightening the dynamics of the record, Nate Newton from Converge guests on "Tread on the Necks of Kings" and "Responsibles", while Jonny Davy of Job For A Cowboy adds a distinct vocal madness to "Pray for Eyes" and "Prevailed." The guest appearances create a deadly vocal diversity, which compliments the intense fret work. Guy continues, "We have a lot of mechanical changes, but Gunface was definitely hell-bent on throwing in these melodic soulful parts. The riffs can be incredibly abrasive and frightening, but they also have emotion, personality, soul and feel as well." Add to that the intricate cover and packaging layout by Paul Romano (Mastodon, Chiodos, Through The Eyes of The Dead), and The Red Chord have a dangerous new record on their hands.

Ultimately, the stories remain central to Prey for Eyes. "I don't want this to be one of those bands that will just be forgotten. I feel like I'm a writer before a vocalist. My writing has always been pretty solid. With this genre, there's a lot of repetitive themes and material. I wanted to really break the mold on that. I just want this band to stand out and do something different, and I feel like we achieved that." BY RICK FLORINO

Product Description

THE RED CHORD made a giant leap from their debut release Fused Together in Revolving Doors to 2005’s Clients, a leap that found the band moving from tiny clubs to the world’s biggest metal stage as part of OZZFEST 2006. Fortunately the change in venue has not changed THE RED CHORD’s core ethos of creating a highly disturbing, thought provoking grind/metal hybrid. Prey For Eyes pick ups where Clients left off, taking the bands brand on sonic mayhem to another level. However, unlike the Clients, Prey for Eyes is not a concept album. Inspired by actual people, events, dreams, books and loads of random thoughts, Prey for Eyes lyrically contains more twists, and turns all over the map, loaded with more imagination and curveballs than you can shake a stick at. Also unlike the two previous records, Prey for Eyes focuses far less on the negative aspects of everything and is an emotional, bipolar rollercoaster of double and triple meanings in every song, meant to provoke thoughts and free thinking. To that end, THE RED CHORD vocalist GUY KOZOWYK lends some insight to the title track, Inspired by events where my brother, who is a prison guard, walks in on an inmate doing something ridiculous in his cell. The prisoner won’t talk and gets into this dialogue via a notepad. After documenting that he can no longer talk because the devil has removed his tongue, my brother checks the cons mouth with his flashlight. When he tells him that his tongue is definitely in tact, the inmate replies with the cryptic message Pray for Eyes.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Prey For More, March 4, 2008

By 

A. Stutheit "Teyad" (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Prey for Eyes (Audio CD)

2005's sophomore effort, "Clients," marked a completely different sound, and a substantial step forward for The Red Chord. Its complex, intelligent, "math-y," and unpredictable songwriting proved to the world the world that they have more up their sleeves than just mere muscle and tough-guy attitude - like brains, for example. And now, two years and about a billion shows later, they have returned with their third full-length, "Prey For Eyes." It appears that the Massachusetts quintet are now honing their sound, because this record continues in a manner similar to what was heard on its predecessor (which is a brave move considering many fans were less-than-thrilled with that album.) As such, this release is definitely not as big of a departure from "Clients" as it was from 2002's debut, "Fused Together In Revolving Doors."

With that said, let it be known that "Prey For Eyes" is, without a doubt, the better of the two discs, and it is also, hands down, the band's finest and most accomplished and realized work to date. And it may take several keen listens to discern the difference between the two, but there definitely are some. First of all, the band are clearly now much more competent at guitar soloing. Next, several guest vocalists pop up here (Job For A Cowboy's Jonny Davy, Converge's Nate Newton, and Sigh's Mirai all make appearances.) And is it just me, or are the vocals quite a bit more listenable this time around? Finally, and most importantly, the band members clearly didn't strain themselves trying to make these songs overly complicated or Dillinger Escape Plan-esque, and they have done away with all haphazard tempo changes and unnecessary breakdowns. Sure, there are still gobs of breakneck twists and turns to be heard here (and each one of them is sure to knock you off your feet); but this time, you are allowed to latch on to and savor one part of a song before it takes off in a different direction. As a result, this album's flow is not nearly as schizophrenic or hard-to-follow as that of "Clients," thus making it much more cohesive, and an easier front-to-back listen.

The Red Chord are a shape-shifting blend of hyper-kinetic blasting, headbangable groove, technical death metal, grindcore, jazz-fusion, mathcore, traditional hardcore pummel, thrash, and prog/post rock. They also throw in occasional metalcore-style breakdowns, slow, doomy passages, and black metal-tinged melodies for good measure. Needless to say, it is an undeniably inventive, meticulous, creative, and captivating heavy music hybrid, and not the kind of one you are likely to hear every day. This is a band that truly defines what it means to be firing on all cylinders - they are capable of crafting riffs on top of memorable riffs, making these fourteen really complex and technical songs also really catchy. They also make sure to include gobs of tasty guitar leads, ripping melodic solos, impeccable drumming, and thick, rubbery, (and often Primus-esque) bass lines that anchor the rhythm section. Frontman Guy Kozowyk also turns in another noteworthy performance with guttural, heartfelt vocals, and lyrics that are not-uncommonly intelligent, heartfelt, and even somewhat thought-provoking. (For proof, see "Intelligence Has Been Compromised" and the surprisingly touching "Bone Needle.")

The highlights are many. The ripping opener "Film Critiques and Militia Men" is a monstrous death-grinder, and a shot of pure, white-hot intensity, but the next two songs are a bit more melodic. "Dread Prevailed" integrates more groove and breathing room into the typical angular guitars, deft double bass slamming, and big, punishing breakdowns, and also tosses in an impressive, winding solo; and "It Runs In the Family" is an insistent, blast beat-driven beat down with brief, but still memorable and well-placed pinch harmonics. But on the other hand, the brutal "Send the Death Storm" boasts a ton of booming, chunked-up riffs and fat bass lines, and it only makes room for a few slivers of melody in the guitar solos.

Moving along, the title cut begins with more death metal heaviness and also includes more noteworthy bass work and a catchy, call-and-response chorus. The song segues seamlessly from here, though, and the second half of it opens up for a jazzy, and ominously atmospheric oasis outro. Thus, it is one of several tracks on here that is simultaneously and equally brutal and beautiful. Its follow up, "Responsibilities," returns the album to its manic, furious and crushing roots with nimble-fingered buzzsaw riffing, pummeling blasts, and momentous, foundation-shaking breakdowns. Track seven, "Midas Touch," effectively offsets its surrounding death metal brutality with some tasty melodic soloing around the mid-point - but it is so brief that you could miss it if not paying attention. Similarly, "Tread On the Neck of Kings" has a short, jazzy intro before it becomes a bludgeoning track with abrasive, barnburning guitars that simply lay waste to all else.

Next up, "It Came From Over There" is, thus far, the clear highlight from a melodic standpoint. It is a very cool and epic piece that makes use of delicate melodic guitar and keyboard lines (which sometimes sound kind of like a snake-charmer's flute) while the four-stringer (Greg Weeks) pumps out warm, strong, flowing bass lines. But the end of that track leads right into "Intelligence Has Been Compromised," a blistering and disorienting tech metal monster that weighs a ton. "Open Eyed Beast Attack" and "Birdbath" are both, more-or-less, straightforward and slamming death metal chuggers (the former is also of note for prog-ish soloing, and the latter for its monstrous vocals), and the aforementioned "Bone Needle" is a cool throwback to The Red Chord's Eighties thrash influences. Finally,"Seminar" closes out the set and is also its pinnacle. Granted, it is not unlike "He Was Dead When I Got There" (the last song on "Clients"), but it is still a positively gorgeous and docile instrumental piece that evokes Seventies prog-rock, and features a wealth of gorgeous guitar harmonies, soaring melodic leads, and keyboards from Sigh's Mirai (who is returning the favor to TRC's axeman Mike "Gunface" McKenzie for contributing a guest solo on Sigh's latest album.)

In the grand scheme of things, "Prey For Eyes" might not outlive the current deathcore trend, but it certainly does transcend mere hardcore influenced death metal. It is, after all, quite a masterful record, and it might be such a cliche to say, but it truly is one of those discs that lets you discover something new with each listen. In other words, as far as the New Wave of American Death Metal goes, this one is beastly.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brutality cranked to 11, July 29, 2007

By 

Anthony Lambiris (Boston, MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Prey for Eyes (Audio CD)

The Red Chord never disappoints with their releases. Every album keeps getting more defined, dynamic and brutal. Not many bands can pull off this type of music and at the same time keep it all coherent and able to keep you interested. I noticed there is a lot more groove to this album than previous ones which is very welcome. It doesn't feel contrived either, it's all feeling. In the end all the pieces fit and you understand exactly what The Red Chord was going for when they wrote this disc. They not only meet expectations, they shatter and surpass them.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Red Chord Can Do No Wrong, July 24, 2007

By 

Bill Lumbergh "yeaahh..." (Initech) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Prey for Eyes (Audio CD)

The Red Chord is no doubt one of the most fresh, original, creative and fun bands to come out in the 2000's. Their 2002 full-length, "Fused Together In Revolving Doors", was an excellent hybrid of death metal, technical metal, metalcore and even elements of jazz in it. 3 years later, they are signed to Metal Blade and release "Clients", which was steering more towards a metal direction and not as chaotic, but still retained their sound. Now, we have their third album, "Prey For Eyes", and the word "excellent" is an understatement.

"Prey For Eyes" is an album that refuses to follow the stereotypical way that most death metal and deathcore bands and instead creates its own sound. The songs are unpredictable and surprising, with heavy riffs during one minute, and a technical jam session during the next. The songwriting this band utilizes is excellent and memorable. Guy Kozowyk's vocals are still chaotic and mind-scrambling.

Overall, we have another well-performed, diverse, original album by The Red Chord. There is no doubt that if the band keeps making albums like this, they will have their respect by the extreme music fans and be remembered for their wonderful style of music they played over the years. Highly recommended.