Customer Reviews

There's No 666 in Outer Space (Dig)

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

 

 

The first release for the new 5-piece band, this is not the Hella of yore quality/consistency-wise, but still a very unique and ambitious release that grows and grows on the listener. The most insidiously listenable track "The Ungrateful Dead" may sound a LOT like Mars Volta (albeit with tighter structure and more conspicuous drumming), but most of the rest of the album is much harder to pigeonhole, often coming across as a funkier, electronics-addled take on Trout Mask Replica. The main element that old Hella fans are bound to focus on is the singing (the first to occupy an entire Hella release). Aaron Ross unfortunately is lacking in stylistic flair and even invites occasional comparisons to such established singers as Chris Cornell, Billy Corgan, and Les Claypool. That said, he does a adequate job of keeping up with Hella's hyper-rhythmic onslaught.
As this CD will divide the old fans, I recommend it to completists and the uninitiated looking for something adventurous but more traditional sounding than two-piece Hella.

For recent fans of Hella and this group of musicians the vocals and more structured/coherent songwriting might take a while to get used to. For longtime fans who might have thought of Hella as 50% of Legs On Earth this is the album you have been waiting for since the year 2000. LOE member Josh Hill is back on guitar and better than ever with incredibly technical staccato lines that are the perfect contrast to an offering that could almost be considered conservative for Spencer Seim. On bass is longtime collaborator Carson McWhirter who does an impressive job of tying the band together; sometimes doubling the lead guitar part but more often than not taking to the low end to dual Zach Hill's onslaught with complex Levinian lines that show his background and interest in more straightforward prog/math rock. The new kid on the block in this group is Aaron Ross who takes on a task few people would envy: adding words to a very successful instrumental band with fans that have historically been resistant to the addition of vocals. I've come to really enjoy the work done by Ross on this album. I've already heard comparisons to Claypool, Cornell, Bowie, Plant and others, but even though I can hear them in certain areas for me the vocals as a whole are a unique element that compliment and help shape the overall sound of the album.

The Cd came to me in a plastic slim pack with no inlay and back artwork and a photo copy of front cover of the album.
I thought the word DIG in the title of this item means digi-pack, but the product I have is not as I wish for.
Totally unacceptable. I ask them for explanations but never reply to me.

I didn't really know much of anything about Hella before gettin this. I own Cryptomnesia by El Grupo Nuevo and loved it. Looked up Zach Hill and wound up getting this album. There's some hidden element in the songs that takes me back to the early 90's when the grunge bands were making this trance-inducing drone of loud. The singers voice takes me right to it. Just listen to Let Your Heavies Out. Also, I'm not getting the Mars Volta comparisons at all. I don't think this is prog. Its noise rock plain and and simple. That's all I'd call it. Nothing I hear reminds me of the Volta and I'm a really big fan of the Volta.

There are some complaints here and there about the lyrics, but I think the lyrics are really good. "Did someone open an undertow or is this drowning feeling typical?" There's a lot of great weird/surreal stuff to the lyrics but unlike, say, the Volta, enough coherent emotionality to go along with it. Again, reminds me of the early good 'emo' stuff that Ian MacKaye was doing with Fugazi and the good grunge ala Dinosaur Jr. This really feels like super technical grunge. And yes, Zach Hill is a beast on drums. Polyrhythms take me back to Elvin Jones when he was with Coltrane and all I listened to was jazz. With guitars and bass its amazing.

All in all this is quickly turning into one of my favorite albums.

This album raised my expectations about what music can sound like: Zach Hill has redefined drumming; Spencer Seim, Josh Hill, and Carson McWhirter create the most intricate lines I've ever heard; Aaron Ross' voice seems to float above the music to deliver profound and emotional lyrics. It's a tragedy that this lineup only produced one album. I cannot praise this album enough.

Ah, vocals. Who would have ever thought? Not me, that's for sure. And not only vocals, but the inclusion of a rhythm guitarist and a bassist. Aaron Ross is actually a very talented vocalist. He has the ability to sound like Cedric Bixler-Zavala, Nathan Willett and Billy Corgan all simultaneously. I can't think of a more fitting vocalist for the style of music he's been put with. Josh Hill's rhythm guitar work is actually very welcome. He tends to add a bit of atmosphere to the mix when it would be nothing more than chaos. Sadly, Carson McWhirter's bass has been completely overcome by the sheer sound of the rest of the instruments. His work with the keys is very noticeable, though. All that being said, Zach and Spencer are still the main attractions, here. Without them, the band would probably end up being a badly thrown-together Mars Volta wannabe group.

Tracks like 'Friends Don't Let Friends Win', 'Hand That Rocks The Cradle' and 'The Ungrateful Dead', prove that Hella can completely revamp their style and still be one of the most unique, mind boggling and strangely acceptable bands in this universe. That is, if they actually are from this universe. Sources are saying Zach Hill is not. 'Hand That Rocks The Cradle' has actually battled '1-800 Ghost Dance' a few times for the spot of catchiest Hella song. It's so downright amazing, it's almost hard to believe. It's also the track that best utilizes Aaron's voice. Switching from a smooth butter-like tone to an ear-piercingly high wail that is just phenomenal. The other aforementioned tracks are almost just as good.

'The Things People Do When They Think No One's Looking' was indeed a great choice for a first single. It sports a very catchy chorus and superbly written instrumentals. Especially Zach's drum intro. The only thing about this song that get's me is that about mid ways in, Aaron's voice begins to mimic a poor-man's Billy Corgan. The chorus of 'World Series' also suffers from this misuse of vocals. Luckily though, the good parts in both tracks FAR out weigh the bad. Especially in 'The Things People Do...'. The video for the song is also the greatest music video in the history of the world. But that's another story for another time.

'Dull Fangs' and 'Let Your Heavies Out' are also two notable stand-outs from this release. Both utilizing all that is good with this newly found style for Hella. 'Let Your Heavies Out' shows Spencer REALLY unleashing himself, and ends up being the guitar highlight from the CD. And 'Dull Fangs' is almost sort of a more laid-back number for the most part. In terms of musical insanity, that is. It also sports a very climactic and rewarding chorus that just has Volta written all over it. The title track is also the album closer...and boy is it ever a grand one. It's the longest on the CD at almost 7 and a half minutes, but it doesn't drag, by any means. It's actually one of the overall highlights of the CD. It sounds almost uplifting. Which is strange for a band such as Hella.

Overall, this CD tends to be very challenging and um, 'different', for lack of better word. Especially for someone who is a long time Hella fan. But with repeated listens and a lot of concentration and open-mindedness, this could easily become your new favorite obsession.

I was introduced to this band by a interview i read about Cedric Bixler-Zavala. He was saying he would sometime's try and sing like Zach Hill played drums. Just reading that made me think "jeeze, that must be some damn good drumming!"
So i checked these guys out, and sure enough i was impressed very much.
For people who are looking for something new and fresh to listen to with a big spoonful of zesty vocals and off the beat drumming and guitars, this is the band you've been looking for.
This album is a great piece of work for anyone who is ready to move on to the "now" time of great music.
Don't ask questions, don't interrupt it, just listen, and eat all that music up.

Yes, this album sounds really weird. But it is at the forefront vanguard of musical brilliance. Catchy, complex, at times kooky, psychedelic, pummeling, and utterly bizarre, yet somehow coherent. Vocals sound like a mixture of Les Claypool and Thom Yorke meet Pink Floyd and Mars Volta.

Hate to say it but, it would be sweet if they came out with an instrumental version of this album.

The vocals you can "get used to" but after you stop fooling yourself, they literally become unbareable. D. Loyd quote, "...the guy is wailing over every second of every track, with absolutely no variation in pitch or style," I couldn't agree more. Silence is a virtue.

Tough album to handle for pre-vocal Hella fans.

The singer is absolutely terrible. If you don't like the singer it completely ruins the album, the guy is wailing over every second of every track, with absolutely no variation in pitch or style. What a waste of what could have otherwise been a fairly decent cd.