Customer Reviews

No Sleep 'till Bedtime

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Devin Townsend was right when he said he was a better studio musician as opposed to live. I thouroughly enjoy Strapping Young Lad's studio material, and although this album was good sound quality for a live recording and still reminded you of who the band playing was, this simply did not measure up, lacking real emotion and cutting the standards even shorter by being such a short recording and with not enough of the greater SYL tracks included.

The band themselves are good musicians, with Devin Townsend's voice being typical and well-fitting to the thrash metal genre mixed with his interesting sense of humor in his lyrics and his rhythmic guitar playing. The bass doesn't stand on it's own but adds a certain thickness to the songs that would be extremely noticeable were it lacking. The weakest part of the live band is the keyboards, whose parts are limited, with the strongest point being the earth-shaking, speed assault of the drums. The drummer does an amazing job of the double bass pedal, kicking out insanely fast rhythms while using the other side of his brain to pound out a completely different beat with his hands. This is one of the truest signs of a standout drummer.

The live album still lacks conviction though, leaving the listener wanting more of the higher quality tracks, such as "Underneath The Waves" and "Room 429". The tracks that DO grab you by the short-hairs on No Sleep Till Bedtime are "All Hail The New Flesh", "S.Y.L.", "Japan", and the best track included, "Far Beyond Metal" with its humorous cheese-metal solo and lyrics.

Don't let No Sleep Till Bedtime fool you; Strapping Young Lad is a funny and talented thrash metal band with a great singer and guitarist, its just that their studio material rises higher than this live album does. Check into that first and then get this if you're a dedicated fan. Hopefully SYL will compile another live album, as I have no doubt that they can come up with something better than this the second time around.

Truly great live show. The sound quality is great and raw, the vocals are terrific, the riffs are amazing and the power displayed by this band live is a true force. Well worth the money.

This CD is ok. You can tell the band has progressed since it was recorded. Non the less still S.Y.L

"No Sleep Till Bedtime" is a MUST for Strapping Young Lad fans. How could you ever go past this CD? It's got most of the best songs taken from their first two studio Albums "City" and "Heavy as a Really Heavy Thing", the production is very good for a Live Album, and when you listen to it you can actually feel the energy too.

The most standout tracks on here would be obviously "All Hail The New Flesh", "Oh My F*cking God", "SYL", "In The Rainy Season" and the two bonus studio tracks "Japan" and "Centipede". The intro "Velvet Kevorkian" is also amazing, and quite different from the original song found on their Album "City". I would say it's actually better, just not as 'in-your-face' type of thing.

The songs "All Hail The New Flesh" and "Oh My F*cking God" along with "Home Nucleonics", all pack alot of punch. These are the main songs to me, that when you listen to them you can just feel the energy of the Live concert. It's almost like being there in person. That's what every Live Album should try to capture, and this Live Album does it very easily.

The song "Far Beyond Metal" as well, is a tongue in cheek song aimed at the taste in music Devin Townsend had when he was growing up. When you first hear it, you'll possibly think that it's the worst song on this Live Album. But listen to it a few more times and it's sure to grow on you. I've heard also that Devin actually makes up the lyrics as he goes along, which is kind of amazing when you hear the lyrics and how he sings them.

The bonus studio tracks "Japan" and "Centipede" are both pretty slow tracks, yet still intense in the traditional Strapping Young Lad way. It's hard to compare them to anything else Strapping Young Lad have done really, except that "Japan" would probably have fitted on their Album "City". It's also hard to say which track is better than the other as they're both brilliant. But as a comparison i'd say that they both, "Japan" especially, sound like (And have elements of..) The Devin Townsend Band mixed with Strapping Young Lad.

All in all, this is obviously a must-have for any fan of Strapping Young Lad, whether you are a new or a long-time fan. Also check out their recent DvD titled "For Those Aboot To Rock", where you can see a full Live show, plus interviews and videos, that has more of their newer songs off of their self-titled album "SYL", as well as some more classic Strapping Young Lad songs that weren't included on this Live Album.

I read somewhere that Devin Townsend thought himself more a studio as opposed to live musician. That makes no difference whatsoever to this live album - the intensity is jaw dropping. SYL is not the kind of the music to have playing in the background while you do something else - it is so powerful and complex it demands your whole attention. I'll often find myself standing rooted to the spot for thirty minutes when I put on their music - this album is especially the case. I also think S.Y.L sounds a lot better here than on the original version. I agree though, would have liked to see Underneath the Waves on this. If you're already a fan of SYL as you probably are, you'll know how intense they are and are probably wondering if it really is worth getting this album - let me just say that I have listened to City over and over, and seen the band twice and this STILL surpassed my expectations.

Firstly, do not think this live album is just a SYL accessory designed to milk money off their fans. This is awesome. Even if you already have City and Heavy as a Really Heavy Thing, this is an extremely powerful and entertaining album. Their live sound is lush and frenetic, and their use of samples and harmonies is mind-boggling. Best of all, there are two truly excellent semi-unreleased bonus studio tracks, Japan and Centipede, which make this nine track "EP" as long as their other albums. TRACK LISTING: Velvet Kevorkian, All Hail the New Flesh, Oh My ******* God, Home Nucleonics, SYL, In the Rainy Season, Far Beyond Metal, Japan, Centipede. If you haven't bought the Ocean Machine album yet, DO SO.

My first impression of SYL was Alien. It finally grew on me, so I decided to buy somemore cds by this band. This cd is probably one of the best live cds around, despite a few negative reviews. I dont know if it was a full show, but they were pretty tight. If you like metal, you should enjoy this cd. SYL is one of the top metal bands on my list now because of this cd.

SYL are really heavy and brutal on the albums but live is where they REALLY Shine(good song too)!...even though the list of songs aren't that many they still chose some of the best songs to put on an amazing live album!...sure it has some overdubs on it but that's ok!still a great live album from an amazing band(which i'll be seeing soon!!!) and the bonus studio tracks are classics as well!...especially centipede!..if you like that song you'll love the Alien album

Towsend has struck gold again with this live album recorded in Australia. I'd never have thought that SYL would be this good live. I docked a star, though. Why? though SYL is amazing live, Devin slurrs his voice alot on stage. Don't get me wrong. The only problem with that is the fact that the only song that he does this is ALL HAIL THE NEW FLESH, which happens to be, thus far, my favorite song. My fav song on this album is Far Beyond Metal. I love how DEvy makes up the lyrics as he goes along.

I have had the good fortune of seeing these guys live the other night (01-21-03 Mesa,Az) and then found this album which for the most part is exactly like the performance I saw.They have an intensity that is unriveled by any band I have seen.Their humor is also a great addition to their amazing performance.Great album and a must have buy.