Bonnaroo preview: Mathcore Metal from The Dillinger Escape Plan

Bonnaroo approaches. From June 11th to the 14th, I’ll be walking, standing, or dancing for roughly 12 hours a day, eating whatever can be eaten raw or cooked over a Coleman stove, and sleeping on the ground. I’ll be smellier, sleepier, and hairier than I usually am (and that’s saying something) and I’ll spend hundreds of dollars for the privilege. I can’t wait.

The annual music festival in Manchester, TN is one of the best weeks of my year. I’ve been to other music festivals but, in my opinion, no other festival has the lineup Bonnaroo sports every year. The best part is the already diverse lineup continues to branch out every year. A few years ago, Metal began appearing at the festival. Now Hip Hop is a regular feature. This year promises to be special too.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be taking occasional looks at some of the lesser-known bands that will be playing there. If you’ve never heard them, I’m hoping you’ll check them out. And if you’re actually going to Bonnaroo, maybe I’ll see you there.

Today, give a listen to a band that has been at it for a dozen years and has been very prolific in that time. Since their formation in 1997, The Dillinger Escape Plan has released four full-length albums and 7 EPs. A warning to the those of delicate constitutions: these guys are serious heavy mathcore Metal. To me, this means that some of what they do is too far outside. I like a little melody with my chaos and rage. The good news is that they sometimes deliver this too.

This time, Dillinger's plan worked

I’m going to recommend you check out their latest release, Ire Works. It’s more accessible than some of their earlier work and it still kicks ass. It’s not all for me. Here is a sample from a song that is too much for me so you can see the extreme end of the range within which they work.  On the other hand, check out these four tracks from this release that I love and have put on my iPod.

• Black Bubblegum – This sounds like Rage Against the Machine meets Queens of the Stone Age to me. I like this sound a lot.
• Sick on Sunday – The production on this is crazy. It comes in mellow, and until 16 bars in, when the percussion and guitars start playing 64th notes. This doesn’t sound like anything else I own and it’s really, really cool.
• When Acting as a Wave – Here is some straight up math rock. These guys must play with an abacus on stage so they can continue to track the time signature changes. The math makes it completely undanceable, but the production and the chord progression still manage to make it ear-friendly to me.
• Mouth of Ghosts – God love them, after the weirdness and vitriol, this closing song on the disc is beautiful. It starts slow and builds in power throughout. By the end it’s a stomping metal tune with screaming vocals, but it remains triumphant and melodic. Buy this one. It’s almost 7 minutes long and it’s great.

I’m looking forward to seeing these guys live. Apparently, their shows feature stage diving, fire breathing, and a bunch of other crazy stuff. Maybe I’ll see you there, but probably not down front.

http://www.ireworks.net/
http://www.myspace.com/dillingerescapeplan