Voivod - Target Earth (2013)

Bands don't often get a second chance at glory.  In fact, most bands don't even get a first shot.  They record material, get signed by a label, get a few accolades (if the music is solid), then fade into relative obscurity.  Very few bands rise above their peers to make their mark.  Voivod did just that in the late 1980's with 3 progressively (pardon the pun) more exciting albums in a row.  First was "Killing Technology", which kept the thrash aesthetic of the previous releases but added more technical, angular riffing.  Next came "Dimension Hatross", which tightened the new approach and expanded upon its predecessor.  Finally, there was "Nothingface", which took the ideas of "Dimension Hatross" and created an atmosphere all its own, combined with an excellent melodic approach that birthed what is arguably the band's best album.  So when original vocalist Denis "Snake" Belanger" left the band after 1993's "The Outer Limits" release, some thought that would be the end of Voivod.  But they emerged as a 3-piece with new bassist/vocalist Eric Forest and re-visited the more aggressive thrash days of yore, while keeping much of the sci-fi element and not forsaking the progressive elements that brought them to the front of the scene.  When "Snake" came back to the band and they put out their eponymous 2003 album 10 years after his departure, it seemed as though they were moving in the right direction.  Tragedy struck the band, however, when original guitarist Denis "Piggy" D'Amour was diagnosed (a 2nd time) with cancer, and after battling with it a few years, finally gave up the ghost in 2005.  He left his band-mates enough guitar tracks and song ideas for 2 albums worth of material, but fans once again feared the reinvigorated band would die.

Enter guitarist Dan "Chewy" Mongrain in 2008 to help the band along during a number of live shows in support of the "Katorz" and up-coming "Infini" album material to pay tribute to the band's fallen comrade.  Something happened during his time with the band, however, and he gelled with them more than I suspect any of them would have guessed.  Dan's style was modeled after Piggy's playing, and his playing fit the band like a glove.  A live album in 2009 solidified Chewy's playing as a component of a once again revitalized Voivod, and now 4 years later we have what should permanently cement Chewy as a full-fledged member of the Voivod family in the album "Target Earth", the band's first release of truly new, collaborative material since 2003's self-titled release.

There was a bit of buzz leading up the album's release, hailing it as a triumphant return to form, a return to the "classic" Voivod sound, and the best thing they'd done in years, etc.  That kind of talk gets thrown around a lot when an old band makes a new album, and it's usually just shop talk.  When the rubber meets the road, however, the old dogs don't often deliver on the promise of "returning to their roots".  Voivod, however, has recorded one of the most fulfilling and listenable albums of their career without sounding as though they're repeating themselves too much.  It's a sort of return to the "golden era" of the band's sound and style, without sounding like a rehash, also without forsaking the other material they've released.  So what you get is a decidedly heavy Voivod album that sounds a whole lot like the triumvirate of "Killing Technology" through "Nothingface" with doses of the thrash from the first 2 albums and later Eric Forest material, as well as some of the more groove-oriented stuff present from "Voivod" forward.  It's an excellent summation of the total Voivod sound.  Need more to whet your appetite?  Read on.

For me personally, as a long-time Voivod fan and proponent that "Nothingface" is the band's strongest work, what had been missing for a long time was the angular, jazz-inspired riffing that used interesting time signatures and unique (for metal, anyway) chording.  That was part of what separated Voivod from the rest of the pack, and helped put them in a league all their own.  After E-Force's tenure with Voivod ended and Snake returned to the fold, I never quite felt that they recaptured that approach.  That doesn't mean they didn't have some good riffs, because they did.  "Voivod" was a strong record, and "Katorz" had some interesting ideas, but the overall feel of Piggy's riffs didn't match the strange sci-fi atmosphere the band had created years before.  And though Jason Newstead provided solid bass work during his time with the group, it didn't match the more nimble and interesting playing of original bassist Jean-Yves "Blacky" Theriault.  So with the band back together in its original form, save for Chewy in place of Piggy, the sound has come much more full circle and recalls a more atmospheric and "spacey" feel that the band had lost somewhat in the last 15+ years.

Unlike the occasionally sparse atmosphere of "Nothingface", "Target Earth", by contrast, is far more dense and immediate.  This record is never suffocating, but the almost constantly pulsing bass and propulsive drumming of Michael "Away" Langevin provide a slightly more evenly paced affair than "Nothingface".  The guitar sound has been brought into modern times as well, recalling and touching on the sound of previous albums, but having a nice weighty tone to it.  Chewy's riffing sounds like a late 1980's Piggy with modern production, which I'm sure is what he was aiming for, and the whole band sounds hungry, as if they know they're not going to be around forever and the amount of time they have left to bring the metal is limited.  In short, Voivod sounds as if they know this is the best set of songs they've recorded in years, and they're strutting their stuff because they know they have a winner on their hands.

As I hinted at in the last paragraph, instrumentation sounds great here.  Chewy's guitar sounds a lot like Piggy did on "Nothingface" but with a bit more beef to it, and Blacky's bass has that nice rumble we've come to expect from him, just with a bit more presence due to the production.  Away sounds as good as ever behind the drums (how is he so nimble at his age?), with lots of powerful double bass drumming, snappy snare hits and fills, and crashing cymbals when need be, but his usual dynamics present when the song needs something a bit more subtle.  And Snake is in near top form here, with a good combination of his more gritty approach utilized on recent records and on the band's early material, and the more melodic singing/droning he developed in the mid-late 80's and beyond.  The production itself is spot-on as well, with good separation of instruments and giving everything just enough room to breathe without sacrificing that dense atmosphere I mentioned earlier.

With everything that they've done right, what's not to like here?  My concerns are mostly minor, honestly, so mileage may vary with others.  The final track, "Defiance" feels like a bit of a throwaway, because it's basically a 1-minute instrumental intro, followed by the start of something that fades out shortly after, resulting in a minute-and-a-half track that closes out the album fairly clumsily.  My only suspicion is that Voivod is "pulling a Marvel", essentially giving us a hint of how the next album is going to start by giving us a taste at the end of the current release.  Be that as it may, it's still a bit distracting after an album of such great material.  The cover art has also been a source of frustration for many fans.  Away has done all the Voivod art over the years, and while it hasn't always been top-shelf ("Phobos" or "Kronik" come to mind), this feels quite amateurish.  My final gripe is far more personal, in that, I wish Snake utilized a bit more of the melodic approach to his vocals than the grittier voice, but the heavier nature of the material on the record suited the grittier approach throughout much of the album, so that's simply a preferential thing for me as a fan of his voice.

All in all, this is a very strong record, and indeed, statement from Voivod that they're not going to just go away now that Piggy is no more.  Piggy's memory lives on in the minds of fans like myself, and Voivod has done him proud by making a record worthy of his legacy.  Chewy should be awful proud of himself for striking that balance between aping Piggy and providing his own take on the Voivod sound.  "Target Earth" is a clear victory for the band, and it's my hope that enough fans took notice of this album that the members of Voivod are invigorated and energized so they can go back and write more material for us.  If "Target Earth" is any indication of the caliber of material we can expect from them in the future, we're in for a treat.  If it wasn't already evident, let me be perfectly clear.  Voivod is back, and are here to stay.

92/100

Album of the Moment - Voivod's self-titled release

When key members of a band leave the fold, it often throws off the group dynamic.  Some bands pick right up and continue on as if nothing had happened.  Others take their art in a new direction or explorer other avenues.  If that key member returns, it's often easy for the band to fall right back into things the way they were prior to that member leaving, in part because there is an established base to cull from.  Voivod suffered a loss when original bassist Jean-Yves "Blacky" Thériault left, but it was the departure of original vocalist Denis "Snake" Belanger that changed things for them, seemingly forever.  They recruited bassist/vocalist Eric Forest and backtracked to a progressive and aggressive thrash sound, much like what they had pioneered on their 1st 3 releases.  After 2 albums and a couple compilations and live releases with Eric, the band regrouped with "Snake" and began writing new material again.  On bass came none other than former Metallica bassist Jason "Jasonic" Newstead.  With this eponymous release, the band reverts to their previously explored spacey prog-metal sound they were using prior to Belanger's original departure.

Musically and sonically, this has a lot in common with the last 3 Belanger titles: the incomparable "Nothingface" (arguably the band's high water mark, and my personal favorite), "Angel Rat" (a somewhat blatant attempt at mainstream acceptance, though on the band's own terms), and the highly sci-fi themed "The Outer Limits".  This release has a bit of the "earthy" production feel of "Angel Rat", but the sci-fi themes are reminiscent of "The Outer Limits" quite a bit, and songs like "The Multiverse" and "Divine Sun" reflect some of the more obtuse science fiction of "Nothingface" from a lyrical and musical perspective.  None of the material here is as immediately memorable or accessible as the 3 records it is seemingly inspired by, though repeated listens reveal a strong comeback effort on the part of the band.  All band members are in fine form here, though guitarist Denis "Piggy" D'Amour (RIP) relies a bit less on the jazz-inspired chords and winding riffs as he used to, making the record a bit more palatable to those less inclined to spin "Nothingface" or "Dimension Hatross" on a regular basis.  Drummer Michael "Away" Langevin" echoes his work on "Nothingface" quite a bit here with similar patterns and rolls, though not in an overtly self-plagiaristic way.  "Jasonic" is solid on bass, though he does nothing too complex, but then Piggy's riffs don't give him a whole lot to work with in terms of harmonic interplay.  "Snake" sounds great after his 10-year hiatus with the band, though I think a bit more melody in his vocal lines would have been welcome with this material.  When he was more a-melodic on earlier material, there was more fire and it was more interesting.  Anyone who listened to his last 3 albums with the band knows he has a good singing voice, especially evident on "The Outer Limits", so hearing him go back a bit is a minor disappointment.  Otherwise, he is solid here, if perhaps a bit to forward in the mix.

The thing that is frustrating about the album at first blush is that it starts out kind of boring - "Gasmask Revival" and "Facing Up" aren't exactly going to light the world on fire, and it's a bit of a mystery as to why they chose those to open the album, other than perhaps putting the more immediate material up-front.  "Blame Us" begins to pick up a bit more of the band's signature spacey sound, and by the time you get to "Rebel Robot" and "The Multiverse", Voivod fans should begin to feel right at home.  The album continues to progress from there and becomes more interesting with "Divine Sun" and "Reactor".  The album culminates in the final track, the album's single "We Carry On" which makes a partial return to the more muscular and straightforward sound of the first couple tracks, but retaining some of the more "Voivodian" personality of the rest of the material.  As some reviews I've read have mentioned, the album is perhaps a bit overlong.  I think if they had trimmed the 1st 2 tracks out and kept the rest it might have been a stronger album.

All things said and done, this is a solid outing from a band many had left for dead after Eric's departure, and a good return to form.  It's not their strongest release, and ultimately may not equal the quality of "Dimension Hatross" through "The Outer Limits" on every level, but there's enough to love  here that the Voivod faithful like myself should find sufficiently attractive.  I would consider this a workmanlike album from a group who payed their dues and never quite broke out the way that they were predicted to, and certainly not in the way they deserved to.  If you're a fan of Voivod's more progressive leanings, this is an album you'll want to at least hear, if not add to your collection.

Album of the Moment - Voivod's "Nothingface"

This is an album I absolutely love.  I stumbled across it in the bargain bin (for shame!) at a now-defunct music store (F.Y.E. in the Westgate Mall in Lincoln, NE) in late summer 1996, just as I was entering college.  It was maybe my first or second week, and I was already discovering some great new music.  This was a band I had heard the name of, but had never heard their music.  Of course, this was in the infancy of the graphical internet, when designing web pages in HTML was still seen as "geeky" and something you could charge big bucks for.  Fast forward a few weeks and I was spinning this CD almost constantly, enthralled by the twisted melodies, the angular, jazz-inspired chords and riffing of Denis D'Amour (erm, Piggy), the demented vocals of Denis Belanger (or Snake, if you prefer), the thumping basslines of Jean-Yves Thériault (Blacky, if you prefer) and the oh-so technical yet tasteful drumming of Michael Langevin (Away, as he dubbed himself), who also provided the deliciously crazy artwork for this, and all other Voivod releases.


This album represented not only the band's commercial breakthrough (indeed, a record contract with MCA), but arguably their artistic peak, combining the aggression of their early thrash works with the technicality and panache of their mid-period and later work, to form the perfect fusion of music and madness.  No longer content to dwell solely on the storyline of the Voivod character itself, but now the band was exploring more complex themes involving self-reflection, environmental concerns (surrounded mainly around Alzheimer's and a steel plant in their local area of Canada), and of course plenty of intricately woven tales of science fiction.  One can't listen to "Missing Sequences" without being drawn into the world of insects and the band's interpretation of the "working class" in etymological terms.  I'd be remiss if I didn't highlight their cover of Pink Floyd's "Astronomy Domine" for two reasons: firstly, that it gave the band their first notable single, and secondly (more important), that it was vastly superior to the original in nearly every way.  It captured the kind of demented mindset that Syd Barrett had, but with an edge and realization that was never possible in the lo-fi late 60's.


This isn't a constant spinner - it's one of those albums I pull out every few months and pour over, then put away again to return to when I need that fix.  Sadly, the band never again reached this level of greatness.  The 2 follow-up albums "Angel Rat" and "The Outer Limits" are brilliant in their own right, each achieving their own artistic greatness in their own way, but never quite firing on all cylinders like this gem.  There's a reason why this is one of my favorite metal albums of all time, and it's simply this: sheer brilliance.