Damageplan Album Review:
Im sorry. at 2006-02-18
We all know how great Pantera is, and how Mr. Darrell Abbott is a god, but when you review this album this should all be left behind. This album should be graded by itself, and not as an ode to Dime. And when graded by itself, most of us know what we REALLY think. RIP Dime, but the riffs on here are so downtuned and forgetable, and the whole album is so monotonous.When I picked this up I was so upset because of how awful this is, and the lack of solos on everysong bugs me to death. This Lachman dude is no Phil Anselmo. Not even close. Well, Ima go listen to Cowboys and try to forget about this, and you all should do the same.
Damageplan Album Review:
This is a must-have. at 2006-02-13
This is one of those CDs that you just have to have. If youre new to Heavy Metal and you want to see what its all about, first you should know that all the truly greatest artists (in whatever art) make as their product what they feel. I would rank among those Jimi Hendrix, Cliff Burton, Layne Staley, Rob Halford, all of Led Zepplin, Bon Scott, and lets not forget Roberta Flack. They are the ones with talent beyond talent. Merely great artists do some of that but are more focused on the technical aspect and so fall a little short. Some examples could be Randy Rhoads, Tony Iommi, Van Halen brothers, Angus Young, all of The Beatles, Glyn Clark, Steve Vai, Geddy Lee, the rest of Metallica, etc. And there are still innumerable artists who are very good but beneath all of those. Listening to this CD will show you that Darrell and Vinnie rank in the first order. In my opinion, though offbeat stylistically, theyre pretty much the epitome of heavy metal. Theyre my favorite and this is my favorite CD from them. I would recommend it.If youre new to Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul (theyre brothers), listening to this CD will let you in on most of the musical style of Pantera, which had been their band for more than a decade. Obviously a large thrust vector of Pantera came from Phil Anselmo (vocals) due to his ultra-macho personality, but the rest of it -the music- continues here with a different frontman. The Abbott brothers (Darrell and Vinnie) didnt really create a new style, they didnt create heavy metal, but what they play is inexplainably different. Its infectious. Its great to listen to. If you were a Pantera aficionado, you see how Darrell and Vinnie moved on to the next level with their music. Looking back on all their other albums with Phil Anselmo and what theyve done with themselves all through their most energetic career, no disrespect to Phil, but it seems they were held back with too much hate. I think that if the younger Abbott bros. from the 1980s could have gotten on the internet to the future and had a copy of this CD sent to them, they would have been proud of how things turned out. It sounds like these older guys are just having fun being themselves and ripping it up. Same on the video too (Breathing New Life video included on the CD). Take it from an older guy like myself, there isnt anything as fulfilling as doing what you really like, are really good at, really kicking aas at it, and having a blast. Knowing they were doing that and seeing the entirely new path of their music with endless promise made it even more enjoyable to listen to.Patrick Lachman for vocals was the right choice. His singing is very expressive, his style suits them perfectly, and its interesting what hes got to say. After hearing the CD I cant imagine anyone else doing it and its amazing that he was a guitar player (most recently, Halford) and not a vocalist before he landed here. Regarding the other reviews, I dont think he sounds trendy at all. He gives the music a big, sweaty slamdunk and he must have been a great frontman for Damageplan. Comparison to Phil Anselmo is pointless; Theyre both awesome singers. Theyre both hardcore. Theyre just different. Phil suited the music better before, and Patrick suits the music better now.Of all Panteras albums, arguably the best to date had been Vulgar Display Of Power. That CD, with every song, continually built up an irresistable crescendo and every FFF time I played it, I mean every time, I found myself turning it up. The louder it is the better it sounds, without limit. Awesome drums, brilliant guitar, thundering bass, terrifying yet inspirational vocals, all of it geared towards driving your speakers to explosive levels of wattage. Although by later standards of metal music it became kind of cheesy, it nevertheless still cant be beat for rocking out, even today. I think that while New Found Power is not even a contender in wattage potential that Vulgar Display Of Power, uuhh, displays, it still keeps similar power music. Some of the tracks are more introspective, it seems its more geared for playing on a bar stage (which may be appropriate because thats where theyre going to play it), and the last track is a feel-good song with a comfy letoff of the guitar. BUT its just more likeable.Wake Up is an intro song to lead in to the mood of the album, although somewhat muted and plodding. Kind of generic.Breathing New Life is the flagbearer of the album, and on the video. Good meat-and-potatoes basic jamming with some sweaty feet pushing the bass drum pedals.New Found Power is where the album takes off, starting out with what you thought might be more basic jams but builds up a little bit to a catchy refrain and vocals, the drums, and guitar (in that order) urge you to turn it up. With kind of an anticlimatic ending making you wonder whats next.Pride takes it down a notch at first but then the Lachmans come-along-with-me vocals keep the volume turned up. YAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH Its just a matter of pride but thats all right, God bless! Guitar solo needs to be cranked and vocals resume. Otherwise uneventful but youre anticipating the next song.F*** You gets down and dirty. Fast, raunchy, funny lyrics, guitar gets saucy and makes some interesting noises, lots of texture and time changes, keep leading back to the basic message, F*** You!. Crank it up even more.Reborn is back to the basics again (kind of plodding, actually) and Lachmans vocals keep it going. Guitars ala Far Beyond Driven album.Explode somehow comes from the same direction as what youve heard so far on the album, which kept its roots in a basic variety of metal, but pushes the limit in the direction of stylistically new music. Kind of like basic mosh metal from the 22nd century or something, with some weird noises that they make work as background music. They do pull it off, though the average 21st century listener will probably take it for granted because theyre used to weird noises by now.Save Me returns to meat-and-potatoes loud music. Vocals keep it turned up. Saaaaaaave meeee from myself, if you ever really caaaaaaared! Sounds good but kind of repetitive. Keeps the volume sustained. save may! from may!Cold Blooded is more of the same. Some guitar ala Far Beyond Driven and drums reminiscent of Great Southern Trendkill. Good strong rhythm riffs keep the volume sustained.Crawl goes much more back to Far Beyond Driven days but with Lachman on vocals instead. Normal speed, then slows down and gets introspective, then speeds up again. It works OK.Blink Of An Eye goes back toward the new style, and more melodic and catchy. Vocals and some cool guitar riffs keep it going. Refrain slightly reminiscent of something Kiss would do if they were forced to play music this heavy.Blunt Force Trauma is much more, I think guitarwise, influenced by Ace Frehley. Starts out with sort of clean guitar chords with chorus/flange effect like Ace would do, then Lachman puts his vocal meats on the table, they do a few choruses and the bridge/solo totally goes off in another direction and sounds like a tribute to Ace Frehley! I like it. Sounds great. Then they play the rest of the song. The whole track (except the solo) has that slow and heavy thing going like Chris Barnes Six Feet Under tracks.Moment Of Truth continues on with the slow and heavy thing, vocals sound good with the chorus effect. Hoary rhythm riffs from the guitar make an awfully begrizzled mood. If you listen, the guitar solo has elements of Cowboys From Hell, Vulgar Display Of Power, and Far Beyond Driven all in one solo. Stammering rhythm is reminiscent in structure of earlier rock/funk music from perhaps the late 70s or early 80s, which the older bar crowd would appreciate and should still sound good to everybody. How they can throw all this together and make it work shows that they do indeed know what they are doing as musicians, though again it would probably be underappreciated.Soul Bleed starts off with quasi-acoustic guitar strumming, introspective vocals, and goes on with a mix of those for the rest of the song. Time to turn down the volume, just listen and relax. Aw-shucks clean guitar solo, return to the chorus, and a relaxed guitar fadeout. Although still not the most groundbreaking as such titans as, say, Are You Experienced (Jimi Hendrix) or Led Zepplin 1 (Led Zepplin), this CD belongs on the shelf next all the other landmark metal classics such as Shout At The Devil (Motley Crue), ...And Justice For All (Metallica), Vulgar Display Of Power (Pantera), Highway To Hell and Back In Black (AC/DC), Appetite For Destruction (GnR), Creatures Of The Night (Kiss), Screaming For Vengeance (Judas Priest), Permanent Waves (Rush), most old Van Halen records, Paranoid (Black Sabbath), Dairy Of A Madman (Ozzy), Peice Of Mind (Iron Maiden), and so on.And so it is here that Darrells career ended. The tragic details do not need to be repeated, they are in abundance if you look for them.
Damageplan Album Review:
Damageplan - New Found Power at 2006-05-26
After Pantera went their separate ways in 2001, Vinnie Paul Abbot and the late Dimebag Darrel Abbot went on to form Damageplan and this CD New Found Power was the first CD of the unfortunately short lived venture by the Abbot brothers. From reel to reel, this is a great album (and again, Im not just saying that because its the right thing to say about Dime but SERIOUSLY, its great).Just like the rest of you, I would consider myself a Pantera purist first for several reasons. Dime was the reason I stopped playing guitar in Grunge bands and graduated to the sophisticated Metal that bands like Pantera made famous. Damageplan doesnt follow the same stylings as Pantera but the direction of this group was still very good. This CD may not be as heavy as Cowboys From Hell, Vulgar Display of Power or even Far Beyond Driven but nonetheless, the music is artistically sound and Dime and Vinnie show their technical prowess as well.There arent as many guitar solos on this but the ones that are on here are classic Dime. The bass lines are also very heavy, almost Korn like in a way on some tracks. And vocalist Pat Lachman reminds me of a younger Max Cavalera (of Sepultura and Soulfly) who can still croon like Layne Staley on some of the slower tunes. I think one mistake people make when they get this album is that they spend too much time comparing Lachman to Phil Anselmo. Well, DONT! Youre wasting your time if youre doing it that way. If you ask me, Lachman helps Damageplan be a little more unique.I highly suggest this album. It doesnt matter if youre the avid metal head or a newcomer or even a true Pantera fan. This is an album for all to enjoy. Ill admit, there arent many metal albums that I can listen to all the way through without skipping any tracks (my list of albums like that are Slayer Reign in Blood, Slipknot Slipknot, Pantera Vulgar Display of Power, Anthrax Persistence of Time, Soulfly Soulfly and System of a Down Toxicity), I can now easily add this album to my list. Also, check out the other albums and artists Ive listed.
Damageplan Album Review:
The cold hard-core truth at 2005-10-27
I cant believe the bad reviews I am hearing about this album. I am a huge Pantera fan and to be honest, I believe Damageplan doesnt have quite as hard core a sound as the CFH lineup, but come on...did every Pantera album sound the same as the one before it? I think not. So why does this album have to sound the same as a completely different band (Pantera)? When Zakk Wylde formed BLS, people either loved it or hated it. But I never heard those who hated it compare BLS to Ozzy. Theyre different bands, just like here. I think BLS is more hard core than Ozzy but you dont hear me saying Ozzy sucks cause he doesnt sound like BLS.I am still giving this album 5 stars. Why? Who says that it must equal in comparison to a Pantera album? I bought this album when it first came out in early 04 and it is still,...still the one you will find me listening to most over everything else.Each track on here has a different and unique offering of its own. Every time I hear Breathing New Life I still see the guitar God Dime strolling out from backstage at the beginning of their set when I saw Damageplan at Rock Am Ring in Germany last year. My personal favorite tracks are Pride and Soul Bleed.I remember reading an interview where Dime once said he liked all guitar work he heard. Even if it sucked, somehow the suckiness was filtered out and all he heard was the beauty in it.I truly believe Dime was the greatest guitar player this world will ever see. He was the most well rounded player as it was obvious in his own playing style rooted in blues, country, southern rock and of course metal. The only other Ive seen that comes remotely close to this mix would be John 5, formerly of Marilyn Manson.If you are a Dime fan or simply appreciate good music, this album is worth every penny.Rest in Peace Dime... You are sorely missed brother m/ m/
Damageplan Album Review:
Damageplan New Found Power at 2006-03-12
For serious fans of Metal Music, one will remember when Dimebag went by the name of Diamond Darrell and sported the cover of Metal Forces Magazine in a one-piece, stretch-peach-colored jumpsuit with sequins around the chest and crotch and a rounded afro. He was a dedicated player who worked extremely hard to make something from his love of the guitar and finally cut his way up from the underground and shed his former image. He was a good lead guitarist; especially when one considers that most power-metal bands began forgetting how to play lead guitar back in the Early 90s. This album has a few good catchy, riffs, and considering the draught that heavy music has been suffering due to the short-hair, grunge and alternative styles of mainstream music, when waiting for this album to arrive, I really wanted to like it. It does have its moments, but I found the songwriting very basic with riffs too repetitious when compared to Diamonds....whoops...I mean Dimebags actual high playing ability. Wasnt one of his best.