LYRIC VIDEO ROUND-UP: EX DEO, ENSLAVED AND STONE SOUR
Lyric videos are the new Facebook are the new MySpace are the new Friendster are the new black. Let’s take a look at three that came out this week from Enslaved, Ex Deo and Stone Stour.
I really, really like the new Enslaved song “Thoughts Like Hammers.” There are traces here of the textures and depth that made 2008’s Vertebrae so captivating (and IMO was missing on 2010’s Axioma Ethica Odini), but still Enslaved are proving once again that they really are one of those bands that continues to change and evolve with every single record. And Grutle Kjellson’s clean singing voice, oh my, absolutely gorgeous here. RIITIIR comes out on October 9th and can be pre-ordered here.
New MetalSucks scribe Emperor Rhombus liked Caligvla, the new album by Roman-themed epic death metallers Ex Deo, enough to give it a 3.5 out of 5 horns rating. And who could blame him? There’s nothing not to like about Ex Deo: it’s the members of Kataklysm dressing up in Roman armor and being all epic and heavy and shit. Check out the lyric video for “Per Oculos Aquila” below; it’s about something Roman, presumably related to Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (aka “Caligula”), the emperor of Rome from 37 AD to 41 AD (why such a quick reign for an emperor? he was assassinated):
I do not understand the backlash against Stone Sour. OK, they’re not br00tal… and? Not only are these two new songs insanely catchy, but they’re executed with flare — double bass! scorching guitar solos! no AutoLabonte vocals! — and they’ve certainly got some quotient of heavy even if they aren’t going to rip your bowels out. If you’re a fan of heavy music and you can’t enjoy these songs simply because they aren’t heavy enough I might suggest you have some deep psychological issues you ought to get checked out.
-VN
