Author: Rok Klemše
Artist: Voivod
Label: Century Media
Release: year_month
Runtime: 56:42
Rating: 4.5/5
Canadian thrash oddballs Voivod were utterly one-of-a-kind right from the start. Different from raw German thrash and American Bay Area thrash metal, inspired mainly by punk/hardcore, Motörhead and progressive rock, and above all by one of the most original guitarists of his generation, Denis »Piggy« D’Amour, they were a unique gem of progressive/thrash metal. And they still are. Despite Piggy’s far too early death, when he took off for the stars in August 2005, he left behind an unforgettable legacy and, even more importantly, so much material that the surviving members of Voivod (with help from Piggy’s good friend Jason »Jasonic« Newsted) were able to put out two whole studio albums based on recordings from his computer, Katorz (2006) and Infini (2009).
Voivod’s future without Piggy was a huge question mark. Plenty of people claimed the band died with him, but thankfully that didn’t happen. Original members Away and Snake took in guitarist Daniel »Chewy« Mongrain (ex-Martyr), who was a hell of a fitting choice, since he’d long been Piggy’s »apprentice.« What made Voivod fans even happier was the return of the original bass bomber, Blacky (Jean-Yves Theriault left the band after the album Angel Rat). The foursome delivered a string of excellent comeback gigs, but the bigger question was whether they could keep that good form on a new studio record, the first one without Piggy’s unmistakable contribution. The new song, Kaleidos, which the guys had been playing for a year or two, promised a lot, but it wasn’t enough to give a bigger picture of the new material, and a little worm of doubt kept gnawing away right up until the first notes of the intro to the title track, Target Earth.
Any doubt gets crushed in the bud by Blacky’s booming attack with that famous »blower bass« sound! Okay, all credit to Newsted for keeping Voivod alive after Piggy’s death, but damn, how badly we missed Blacky’s unforgettable bass, which always tied the Voivod madness together into one mighty whole. The bass once again weaves brilliantly with the guitar lines, which Mongrain wrote with great respect. If I didn’t know Piggy was gone, I could easily claim those guitar lines were his. That’s how well D’Amour’s spirit lives on through Chewy! But Chewy proves he’s not in the band just to imitate, channeling Piggy’s genius mostly through jagged, futuristic riffs, odd tempo changes and atonal chords, while his own guitar lines sound much more technically polished than Piggy’s. He shows it above all in his distinctive soloing, which has the power, speed and explosiveness of a Space Shuttle launch.
Voivod honestly haven’t sounded this good since The Outer Limits, maybe even since Angel Rat, and with its complex, heavily progressive structure Target Earth is an album that would easily find its place among the brilliant trio of Killing Technology-Dimension Hatröss-Nothingface. Yes, Mongrain fits into the Voivod world that well, and his perfect fit shows even more in the raging »battle« between bass and guitar, which pass the lines back and forth like in a game of Pong. Blacky and Chewy have woven their bond like a mighty root system, while Away, with his thundering double bass and simple, effective transitions, is like oxygen for the tree’s unbridled growth. A tree whose crown is Snake’s nostalgic vocal performance. Only Snake can get on your nerves with his vocals like that and you still love him! With his dirty, shallow, »botched« vocals Snake recalls the vocal performances on the golden records, starting with Killing Technology, and his unique voice keeps matching the equally unique music without ever fading. Shame, though, that the vocals are pushed down a bit too deep this time, often drowned out by the instruments, so the crazy lyrics end up somewhat unintelligible and overlooked. The album’s production is also pretty sloppy overall, the instruments aren’t exactly well balanced against each other, and it would have been much better if Voivod had left the production to a more experienced producer.
But despite that »flaw,« Target Earth is an album that won’t tarnish Voivod’s legacy in the slightest, and if anything will enrich it. Not only that, with its uncontrolled speed, progressive complexity and thrash madness, Target Earth recalls the band’s best moments and packs them into a modern garb, still enriched by the personality of one of the boldest and most unique metal lineups of all time. And Piggy, wherever he is, must be proud of his mates, smiling contentedly at Target Earth and breaking his neck headbanging to a Voivod that respects his rich legacy but boldly strides forward. Voivod Lives!
Lineup
Snake – vocals
Away – drums
Blacky – bass
Chewy – guitars
Production
Voivod
Tracklist
1. Target Earth
2. Kluskap O’Kom
3. Empathy For the Enemy
4. Mechanical Mind
5. Warchaich
6. Resistance
7. Kaleidos
8. Corps Etranger
9. Artefact
10. Defiance
