Joey Jordison’s Vimic Featuring Joey Jordison (ex-Slipknot) Announces Debut Album; Dave Mustaine Guests on Single

Joey Jordison’s Vimic featuring Joey Jordison (ex-Slipknot) — formerly known as Joey Jordison’s Scar the Martyr featuring Joey Jordison (ex-Murderdolls) — will release their debut album, Open Your Omen, in early 2018 on T-Boy/UMe. That title may be the most metal way of discussing a fortune cookie imaginable.

So what will Open Your Omen sound like? My guess is: schizophrenic. And not in a good way.

Omen, you see, was produced by Kato Khandwala. Khandwala is quite accomplished, but metal fans can be forgiven for not necessarily recognizing his name: he’s best known for his work with bands from the hard rock end of the spectrum, like The Pretty Reckless and Danny Worsnop’s We Are Harlot Featuring Danny Worsnop (Asking Alexandria). Your natural assumption, based on Khandwala’s involvement, is that Vimic are gonna lean away from metal…

…except that the album also features “mixing and mastering assistance” from Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine, who is (mostly) known for his heavier, thrashier, more technical work. And while the contrast between the aesthetics of Khandwala and Mustaine alone isn’t enough to assume Omen will be trapped between two worlds, the first single, “Fail Me (My Temple)” (which also features a guest appearance by Mustaine) does, indeed, sound like a metal song and a pop-rock song smushed together. Obviously, it is possible to mix metal with more melodic elements… but the two opposing vibes just never really gel here. It sounds like someone tried to mash-up Jordison’s old band with Framing Hanley or something. It’s just… not terrific.

Listen to “Fail Me (My Temple)” below and see whether or not you agree with my assessment. We’ll let you know when we know when Joey Jordison’s Vimic featuring Joey Jordison (ex-Slipknot)’s Open Your Omen has a release date.