Ghost is my favourite for reasons beyond the album. It's really not something to get too excited for. When people have tried to pay attention to Ghost, it has fallen flat for them. If you just play it and ignore it to a certain extent, it's really nice.

Is it 'better' than the others? Probably not. I choose it because it's the most like what I currently like to hear. It doesn't compete at all with Decon or the others in terms of intensity, complexity or force. Although it's surprisingly complex for what it sounds like.

Anyway, trying to diffuse any anticipation for it being more than it is.

Too late, I've already decided I don't need to go to the doctor any more, nor take any medication on account of I can just listen to "Ghost" and I believe it will probably cure all my ills, both mental and physical. Which is awesome because I'm sick of being impotent.

Here's why I'm a Devin Townsend fan: I think that with a few exceptions (:cough: The New Black :cough:), when you buy an album by Devin Townsend (in whatever incarnation) then you are getting something true and real and artistic, and that is rare today. I think it's also because I share certain tastes with Mr. Townsend, as well. Being the same age, we have both tended to go through things at the same time or similarly. Alien became the soundtrack for my divorce. Synchestra hit me in the midst of becoming a father. Ki happens to be my favorite album to fall asleep to. But, mostly, what I love, especially about this 4 album cycle, is that I believe that every sound is what Devin intended it to be. That's pretty cool! Can we say the same thing about other artists? Sure, some, but not many.

Having followed Devin very closely for the last ten years, I have noticed something else. He often makes pronouncements about the future that end up not being true. Prior to making Synchsestra it was declared that it would be one 70 minute song, for example. Many of us wailed and gnashed our teeth when, after The New Black, Devin quit SYL and declared he wasn't touring or whatever in the future. Now, he's fucking touring the world. Ki came out a lot of people thought it represented a death of the Hevy Devy goodness. Then, we got Addicted and Deconstruction.

I'm turning 40 this year. I remember my parents telling themselves that metal was just a phase I was going through when I came home with Iron Maiden's "Live After Death." Thirty years later, that turns out to be not entirely true. There's a lot of metal that's pretty stupid and I just can't listen to. On top of that, I have an appreciation for pop music, as vapid as it is sometimes, and have developed a real enjoyment for Electronic music. Good music is just good music. But, I always end up listening to metal again.

And, I suspect that Devin will end up making heavy music, too. It's funny because I thought Ki wasn't heavy... then I played it in the car with my wife and kids... and had to turn it down 'cause it was disturbing people. Heaven Sent and Disruptr are heavy! So, I feel like that Devin will always be heavy because metal is something you are or you are not. Metal is in your soul. Metal doesn't always sound like metal. Like Mozart is totally metal. Tori Amos, Radiohead, Mumford and Sons, Girl Talk, Kanye West have all been metal to some degree, in my opinion. Metal is intensity, to me. And, I think that Devin will always make intense, personal, honest music.

I remember being distressed that Devin said he would be producing more and writing less. Then Ziltoid showed up. Then four fucking albums of awesome. So, I was hoping Devin would swear off making music again after Ghost... so we can get eight more albums of white heat pure gold.

Devin, you mentioned you would like playing an acoustic guitar and talking and joking? Like the VIP shows? I'd pay for that again. That was totally entertaining! Anyway, I'm buying what you're selling. Thanks for doing it. You're in a good place these days and it makes my heart happy because your music is better than ever. Deconstruction makes Alien look like child's play. Addicted is effortlessly manically fun. I'm thinking Ghost will be beautiful as well. I'm looking forward to your future.

Or, I could just fuck off.

The processing on his voice is very subtle...it's certainly not the Masdival signature. Dev does some harmony that's heavily processed, I think. But no robo-voice, none of the soaring otherworldly Traced in Air style.

I want a new Cynic album too. Traced in Air rules.

You can hear that there's some kind of pitch effect going on, one octave higher than his natural voice. Unless he tracked it twice, singing one octave higher on the other track. But it sounds too exact to be that, so I think it's a pitch shifter. Paul's normal voice on one track, pitch shifted one octave higher on another track.

And yes, we need more Cynic! The acoustic version of Integral on Re-Traced is awesome.

The processing on his voice is very subtle...it's certainly not the Masdival signature. Dev does some harmony that's heavily processed, I think. But no robo-voice, none of the soaring otherworldly Traced in Air style.

I want a new Cynic album too. Traced in Air rules.

You can hear that there's some kind of pitch effect going on, one octave higher than his natural voice. Unless he tracked it twice, singing one octave higher on the other track. But it sounds too exact to be that, so I think it's a pitch shifter. Paul's normal voice on one track, pitch shifted one octave higher on another track.

And yes, we need more Cynic! The acoustic version of Integral on Re-Traced is awesome.

dev extensively uses vocal layering. one of his signitures is the "devy coir" but odly enough decon dosent have much in the way of devy coir since he's got a real coir to do it for him.

Does the "Sorrow Man!" sections in Planet Of The Apes make anyone else think of 0:40-0:42 of this scene from LOTR - Fellowship Of The Ring?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFGh9ARUI_s

Not specifically, but at least I think of 'Saruman' everytime I hear that section!
Lol...

I had to look at the lyrics to see that he wasn't saying, "Saruman!" I actually thought he was. LOL

I wonder if it was intentional (I wouldn't doubt it for a second with Dev). I had POTA and that lOTR clip playing at the same time and "Saruman" and "Sorrow Man!" synched up perfectly.

I've decided the only thing I don't like about Deconstruction is the guest vocalists, simply because I'd rather hear more Dev.

I've decided the only thing I don't like about Deconstruction is the guest vocalists, simply because I'd rather hear more Dev.

I was really put off by the whole guest vocalist idea before I heard the leak... But I think it does work in some places. Ihsahn is immense and Duplantier is awesome as well. He used them well so that they had an impact on the songs but didn't overshadow his own contribution or anything.

Agreed. There wasn't any "hey look over there, it's xxx"-ness about the cameos. They were there to lend their talent, not their presence.

For having a guest on each track besides Poltergeist, I figured there would be a couple I wouldn't be fond of. But like people have already said, he seemed to either pick the perfect people for individual parts or wrote the perfect parts for the individual people. Paul Kuhr on the first track just adds a deep depth and power to the SMOKE THAT FUCKING WEED BOY part that wouldn't be there without him he really fills in the energy. Akerfeldt, going nuts amidst all the Ki-like tension in that song, is just spine tingling and evil, which suits the dramatic build of the song. Ihshan fits the theatrics and circus-like horror or Juular. Tommy Rogers sounds better than he ever has giving the heavy parts of PotA a nice kick. Duplantier sounds like a demon (fitting with the returning "evil circus" feel in Sumeria). Greg Puciato's parts in the outer space dance party add so much intensity to it. Floor Jansen and GWAR dude don't do much I find, but they suit their parts in the tracks really well. I think they are all perfectly placed to switch thing up a bit so that we never get tired of all the awesome Devy moments. And there`s definitely enough of those.

The part of Deconstruction at 6:16 is clearly an homage to Meshuggah.
The solo, the bassline, the tone, everything.
Also, have a look at Decon's cover art. Then look at the cover of Meshuggah's "Chaosphere". Notice anything similar?
I think it's awesome that Devin respects Meshuggah. They are my favorite extreme metal band.

You are aware, that, that solo is played by Fredrik Thordendal from Meshuggah?

Didn't know that, lol. I thought it was Devin.

Is there going to be a preorder going up on Hevydevy? Or is it century media only? I'd like my money to go as direct to Dev as possible.

I feel the same way. I'd just buy a copy off of him if I could... XD Though I do want to contribute to charting it for his future endeavors.

So, have you got any idea of what the pre-order shirts will be like?

Probably a stupid question, but I've not seen anything.

I'm interested on what the vinyl is. Are they B-sides from past DTP albums?

The processing on his voice is very subtle...it's certainly not the Masdival signature. Dev does some harmony that's heavily processed, I think. But no robo-voice, none of the soaring otherworldly Traced in Air style.

I want a new Cynic album too. Traced in Air rules.

You can hear that there's some kind of pitch effect going on, one octave higher than his natural voice. Unless he tracked it twice, singing one octave higher on the other track. But it sounds too exact to be that, so I think it's a pitch shifter. Paul's normal voice on one track, pitch shifted one octave higher on another track.

And yes, we need more Cynic! The acoustic version of Integral on Re-Traced is awesome.

dev extensively uses vocal layering. one of his signitures is the "devy coir" but odly enough decon dosent have much in the way of devy coir since he's got a real coir to do it for him.

Indeed. But I was referring to Paul Masvidal's vocal part in particular, at the end of Sumeria.

since decon & ghost are almost out, any thoughts on when will the big box be released?