Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Mothers Of Re-Invention, May 31, 2003
After a four-year layoff and the process of writing (and scrapping) the new album they were making, I Mother Earth finally returns a new band - in more ways than one. This album has a pseudo-concept, pointed out by the title and the opener (which refers to a strain of e-coli), and is quite unlike the other three albums in mood. Also, this disc is FEROCIOUS compared to the others. The result is the darkest, heaviest, and most gripping album of their career.Mostly, this album goes in a totally new direction, with the band bringing along their old selves in their back pockets. Quite often, the electronic atmospherics of Blue Green Orange are in evidence, but they set the tone more instead of being the icing on the cake as before. Vocalist Brian Byrne makes the biggest leap ahead. The quality, range, and explosiveness of his voice have improved to the point where he's gone from being a replacement man to THE MAN. Guitarist Jag Tanna occasionally (but not always) writes more subdued music here, with simpler, more rhythmic arrangements that give the undertone of intensity to every song; otherwise, the band is tested with various time-shifts and multiple song parts. More often, though, the music is in the form of Bruce Gordon playing a series of stop-start bass lines, which weave skillfully in and out of the classic IME guitar riffs. The trademark jams are fewer and farther between here, but when they occur, they display a guitar-bass shred unlike that even seen on their debut, Dig. Or, to put it another way, each of the more progressive songs could be seen as one long 6-8 minute jam, flavored with vocals. Christian Tanna is an absolute workhorse on the drums, and he has to be; the Latin percussion of old is gone, occasionally replaced by electronic backbeats. The fills he creates and the way he works the toms make you wonder if he's trying to make up for the lack of backing percussionist(s) all by himself. His lyrics are markedly different, with his usual trippy wordplay sprinkled over (gasp!) some more straightforward phrasing, and while his humour isn't lost, it's darker along with the other themes. On the whole, the album is particularly striking for its intensity, and regains the listen-straight-through quality of the first two albums. While IME have always had a rep in the press as a heavy-rock band, now they're a HEAVY rock band. Yet, they pull it off without really getting into nu-metal or neo-grunge territory. For fans who said Dig was the real deal, here's the new deal. Highly recommended.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
WOW!, October 13, 2003
By A Customer
I'm not a reviewer as such, so I'll just give you my story. I was a long-time IME fan, and stuck to my guns that they were as good as ever with Blue Green Orange. After waiting so long for a new album, I wasted no time buying the Quicksilver Meat Dream, just out of loyalty. I was immediately taken aback by how much heavier the sound was, how the Tannas and Bruce Gordon could still combine catchy and challenging, and how great Brian Byrne was vocally. Still, when I put the CD back in its case, my first words were, "I think I wasted my money on this". Maybe I was put off by the relative darkness of the album, especially compared to the feel-good vibe of Scenery And Fish. Maybe the increased progressiveness of a few of the songs was too much to handle. Maybe they were trying to be something they weren't.Still, something compelled me to listen to it again. When I did, I noticed that IME really IS somewhere inside those tunes (maybe even all over them), and that, just as in albums past, repeated listenings made the songs catch on with me. The instrumentation and song craft blew my mind, and the vocals were always phenomenal, maybe the best on ANY IME record. This record is amazing! These songs are now firmly planted in my brain, and I wonder how I could've dismissed them in the first place. They have depth and feeling. They make a cohesive collection in which skipping tracks is not only unnecessary, but is cheating you as a listener. Maybe best of all, they rock in a way that should silence everyone who said IME "wussed out" with their last album. In short, these songs could make this the most underrated major-label album of the year. Buy it and see why.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing., March 18, 2006
I bought this CD the day it came out a few years ago. I loved it the moment I turned it on.
I've always been a fan of I Mother Earth, but I'm not one to like an album just because I like the band. I am a classical pianist, violist, conductor and choral singer, as well as a composer of music in all genres, including rock, pop and jazz. I also have played drums and bass in rock bands for ten years. This album is the most artistically satisfying rock CD I've ever encountered, and is never for a moment pretentious (Tool, Mars Volta, et al).
If you're a lover of "rocking out", then buy this album. If you're a lover of music in any genre, or even someone who truly appreciates artistic intent and values, then buy this album.
I especially love the track "God Rocket". Dire realism combined with the highest level of optimistic creativity...
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