Truthless Heroes

Project 86 | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 24, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Atlantic / Wea
• ASIN: B00006JICA
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (76 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,047 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Heroes Of Truth, October 20, 2002

By 

Troy (LA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Truthless Heroes (Audio CD)

Project 86 has been known as one of the most brutal Christian metal bands around. With the release of their self-titled debut, Project turned many heads with the pure brutality of tracks such as "Spill Me" and "Run". The release of their sophomore album, "Drawing Black Lines", raised even more eyebrows as the band improved in essentially every area of musicianship and song writing. It seemed as though it was quite improbable that Project could rise above what they have accomplished in the past, and, quite frankly, they didn't. Project 86's third album, "Truthless Heroes", takes one step forward and two steps back. Musically, Andrew has greatly improved in his song writing abilities showing his talent for generating melody in any situation. Unfortunately, this new found melodic addition is overdone at times. "Caught In The Middle" and "Know What It Means" are greatly overproduced and, overall, fail to capture the essence of what was intended. On the other hand, "Salem's Suburbs" and "Shelter Me" outweigh the aforementioned portraying amazingly written hooks. A hit or miss formula is at work during the majority of the album. Fortunately, the melody driven material doesn't encompass the entire album. "Little Green Men", "S.M.C.", and "Another Boredom Movement" all sound like b-sides of "Drawing Black Lines". Another double-edged sword of the album is the musicianship it exhibits. With melody being pushed forth as a necessity, Randy Torres' riffs quickly lose their bottom heavy savagery. However, Alex Albert's drumming is intensely emphasized throughout the album. He seems to know exactly which beats work best with certain melodies and executes them flawlessly. With any change this drastic in the musical route of a band, there will be some drawbacks to accompany the immaculate. Lyrically, "Truthless Heroes", sticks with the idea of a concept album focusing on the principle of the depravity of mankind. "Little Green Men" points the finger at the ever-present unrighteousness of the media and government. However, Andrew surpasses the likes of the average anti-establishment lyricist by virtue of his beliefs as a born again Christian. "S.M.C." and "Another Boredom Movement" expose the hypocrisy of the modern church and cultish movements therein, respectively. Near the close of the album is where Andrew shines as he did on tracks such as "Chimes" and "Run" in the past. Former Crucified vocalist Mark Salomon, currently with Stavesacre, joins Andrew on the blisteringly frightening track "Last Meal". Andrew takes the perspective of a man experiencing his first taste of hell. He sees the many bloodthirsty demons crawling near him shrieking "We'll eat what's left of you before we're through". Quite the thorough picture of the horrors of the underworld. "Hollow Again" rises above all things previous both musically and lyrically. Again, the context of a man cast into the fiery pit is taken, but with a Luke 16 rebuttal. Maybe an allusion to the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, Andrew's character begins to grasp the biblical principle that a man has nothing to gain in possessing the entire world and yet losing his soul. He then wishes for repentance, but now it is far too late. "And all along here I was told by fallen men in their charade that we could find a hope inside; the safety of this empty place" he regretfully cries desiring a second chance. Indeed, "Hollow Again" is an exceptionally bold look into the greatest fear known to man. "Truthless Heroes" may be considered a sell-out album to some, but as long as Andrew persists in writing such daring, spiritually thought-provoking, lyrics; I, for one, cannot criticize.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a very dark and mysterious alum from a likewise band, September 29, 2002

By 

mark drummer (portland, OR) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Truthless Heroes (Audio CD)

Project 86 has never really been your average band, although they have in the past seemed to wear their influences on their sleeves. Their debut was just another rapcore album (albeit a notch or two above the status quo). Drawing Black Lines had it's glimpses of what P86 could one day become...a unique band with a thought provoking outlook...Then they went and created the next step in their journey: Truthless Heroes. Yes, the grinding guitar, pummeling bass and drumming, and anguished screams are still here, but they are complemented on Truthless Heroes by much improved musicianship (the guitars, singing, and drumming are all much more diverse and loreworthy than on their first two albums), actual singing amidst the whailing (and done in such a way that it doesn't compromise the intensity at all, rather, the singing provides an eerie backdrop and vehicle for the), lyrics...much of this album is conspiracy theory driven (fans of the X-Files can appreciate much of the "question everything and dig until you find the truth" message). I am sure many Sunday Christians will hear this album and take offense and assume it to be an attack on Christianity, but what I hear is a loud wakeup call to organized religion: "you can't buy your way to heaven, and we won't buy hypocracy. be real, or save your effort and just deny Jesus with your lips the way you do your life."
Overall, this album is gritty, opinionated, and very obviously very deliberate. It's a little rough to stomach the first couple of listens, but when you surrender the tempation to judge a book by it's cover and delve into it, you'll hear one of the best records recorded in a very long time from a band that is very quickly becoming one of the best out there.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If this is what "Big Labels" do then what's the big deal?, February 16, 2003

By 

"earth_x" (Places) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Truthless Heroes (Audio CD)

Project 86's new album, "Truthless heroes," is one of the best albums that I have. Project 86 features a great vocalist who can sing and scream, good sounding guitars, bass, and drums, and a very well made album. This is definatley on the best albums that you can own.

Project 86 is one the of best metal bands out there. They can have good songs, good clean lyrics, and a lot of talent (something a lot of bands lack).

I would have to say the album could be devided into 4 sections, each seperated by the 'commericial' songs.

{Section Number 1}

[Little Green Men] - The first song on the album. It starts out havey and good. The song is very catchy and good. (10 of 10 stars)

[Caught in the Middle] - This song is one of the best on the album. It's a great song, even if it only has a few lines of lyrics. The the tune to this song is very catchy. (10 of 10)

[Know What it Means] - When you first hear the song, you'll notice the 'whiney' sounding vocals. The rest of the song isn't much better than the intro. Of all the songs on the album, this one is the worst. (6 of 10)

[Salem's Suburbs] - A more mellow and quiet song compared to other songs on the album so far. It is very catchy however. (10 of 10)

[...a word from our sponsers] - A 'commerical' song, that basically seperates the first section from the second section.

{Section 2}

[S.M.C.] - Not the easiest song to get into, but when you do get into it (after a couple of listens) you'll realise it's a very good song. It's heavy and fast. The bridge is a little distracting from the rest of the song though. (9 of 10)

[Team Black] - This song follows the basic pattern the Caught in the Middle does. It starts out with chours, then verse, chours, verse, etc. A very melodic song. (10 of 10)

[Your Heroes are Dead] - It's not as heavy as a lot of the songs on the album, but it's still pretty good. The song is very catchy. Unforutnatley it's not quite good enough for a ten. (9 of 10)

[...To brighten your day] - Yet another commerical. On to Section 3.

{Section 3}

[Another Bordem Movement] - Don't be folled by the title. This is song sounds like it could have been on the very first cd. It has a lot of good screaming and heavy guitars. Definatley on the best. The cool feedback and such is pretty cool, but it sort of distracts from the song. 2nd best on the album. (10 of 10)

[Bottom Feeder] - Ahh... the quiet song. A quiet, melodic song. It's catchy, but not a song I turn to whenever I pop in the disk. (8 of 10)

[Shelter Me Mercury] - A pretty good song, although it could have been better. The vocals are pretty good on this song. (9 of 10)

[...and to help you sleep] - A commerical, on to section 4.

{Section 4}
[Last Meal] - Has a 'punk' influence to it. The vocals are catchy on this song, but it just doesn't match up with some of the better songs on the album. (9 of 10)

[Soma] - Well, you could say that Project 86 saved the best two songs for last. Soma and Hollow Again. Soma is the third best song on the album. It's a quiet song, but it has a lot of project sound to it. Extremlty catchy and well written. (10 of 10)

[Holow Again] - The best song on the album. It starts out soft, but then gets hard and breaks into a very catchy song. The vocals are really catchy on this song. The guitars sound really good on this one too. (10 of 10)

[...With regards, T.H.] The final commerical. The ending.

Recommended: Yes.