Band : Norma Jean
Album : Meridional (Deluxe Edition)
Release Year : 2010
Genre : Metalcore / Mathcore / Hardcore
Release Year : 2010
Genre : Metalcore / Mathcore / Hardcore
Tracklist :
1. Leaderless And Self Enlisted
2. The Anthem Of The Angry Brides
3. Deathbed Atheist
4. Bastardizer
5. A Media Friendly Turn For The Worse
6. Septentrional
7. Blood Burner
8. High Noise Low Output
9. Falling From The Sky: Day Seven
10. Everlasting Tapeworm
11. Occidental
12. The People That Surround You On A Regular Basis
13. Innocent Bystanders United
14. Kill More Presidents
15. Deathbed Atheist (KC Blitz Remix)
16. Deathbed Atheist (The Juggernaut Remix)*
17. Distance To Planets*
2. The Anthem Of The Angry Brides
3. Deathbed Atheist
4. Bastardizer
5. A Media Friendly Turn For The Worse
6. Septentrional
7. Blood Burner
8. High Noise Low Output
9. Falling From The Sky: Day Seven
10. Everlasting Tapeworm
11. Occidental
12. The People That Surround You On A Regular Basis
13. Innocent Bystanders United
14. Kill More Presidents
15. Deathbed Atheist (KC Blitz Remix)
16. Deathbed Atheist (The Juggernaut Remix)*
17. Distance To Planets*
Norma Jean are back and following the trend just as good as anyone has ever done. Let’s get this out of the way now, this is not a hark back to their roots; in fact NJ have traveled so far from home it’s doubtful they even remember where they live. That of course isn’t to say that they haven’t evolved along the way, nor is it to say that they’ve stopped ripping off bands because they haven’t. Except it’s ok as long as they continue ripping off good ones. This time around they show the world how in love they are with The Dillinger Escape Plan not to mention how over Botch they are and thank God cause Botch was so 10 years ago.
Few things have changed in camp Norma Jean, first and foremost the breakdowns, the staple of metalcore brigade, are presented on this disc better than 90% of the genre which is something you can’t say often. They keep the momentum at top notch throughout the entire offering and distinguish themselves from each other extremely well. Album opener and first single Leaderless and Self Enlisted ends on a crass note plagued by hammered dissonant chords and the most unfriendly of vocals thanks to Cory Putnam. From then on you can basically tell which tracks were made to rip off the ears and which were meant to soothe by reading the titles. Bastadizer for anyone who hasn’t caught on yet is a vengeful tune that contains a bombastic intro, and is centered around a hook + a riff that wouldn’t feel out of place on an Every Time I Die record. And then… there was Blood Burner an attempt to create a devastating piece of carnage and easily the heaviest Norma Jean song to date. Backed by an exhausting guitar lead and sporadic drum fills the song feels like a bottomless pit of breakdowns and build ups. Sometimes the song is interesting like at the 0:47mark and sometimes the song grows mindless moments like the 2 hour (or something) breakdown that closes the song.
Few things have changed in camp Norma Jean, first and foremost the breakdowns, the staple of metalcore brigade, are presented on this disc better than 90% of the genre which is something you can’t say often. They keep the momentum at top notch throughout the entire offering and distinguish themselves from each other extremely well. Album opener and first single Leaderless and Self Enlisted ends on a crass note plagued by hammered dissonant chords and the most unfriendly of vocals thanks to Cory Putnam. From then on you can basically tell which tracks were made to rip off the ears and which were meant to soothe by reading the titles. Bastadizer for anyone who hasn’t caught on yet is a vengeful tune that contains a bombastic intro, and is centered around a hook + a riff that wouldn’t feel out of place on an Every Time I Die record. And then… there was Blood Burner an attempt to create a devastating piece of carnage and easily the heaviest Norma Jean song to date. Backed by an exhausting guitar lead and sporadic drum fills the song feels like a bottomless pit of breakdowns and build ups. Sometimes the song is interesting like at the 0:47mark and sometimes the song grows mindless moments like the 2 hour (or something) breakdown that closes the song.
Aside from these small complaints this is Norma Jean’s most consistent album to date. They have finally figured out how to mold ridiculously catchy anthems like A Media Friendly Turn For the Worse around their sporadic music and it pays out the dividends each time. When Cory slips in the line “Blood is thicker than water, but which one did you drink?” shivers crawl up my spine escorted along with their temper tantrum to end the track. The People That Surround You On A Regular Basis has a sexy riff that off sets Cory’s interspersed vocals and it creates a beautiful marriage of melody and heaviness. Deathbed Atheist feels like an stab at A Small Spark vs. A Great Forest with its tepid intro bringing the calm before the storm, but one can’t help that they’ve retread these waters all the way until the bridge where they swim a new creek. Instead of blatant cries of “FIGHT FAIR” the band tries blissful swoons of “This is my nightmare”. This is where veteran’s listeners of Norma Jean can hear the change in sound; becoming softer in areas they’d usually tear down and killing their experimental fortunes which they’ve traded out for predictable heaviness. One wonders if they’re done trying to take the helms of the genre and just stick to what they know how to do, simply rawk.
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