GTGC Reviews
email: gavinals69@aol.com
  • Reviews
  • Live Music
  • THE SPANISH ANNOUNCE TABLE

Celldweller - "Offworld"

10/7/2017

1 Comment

 
Picture
Klayton is...in some ways...the Mick Foley of music. I know what you're thinking, that's one weird-ass analogy, Gav's been slammed in thumb-tacks again...but go with me on this one...Mick Foley was one of WWE's most loved in-ring personas, either as himself or, Mankind...who was twisted enough, but if he wanted to get serious, if he wanted to be the tough bad-ass, well he'd whip out the hardcore Cactus Jack character...but, on the flip side, he also had his far brighter, colourful character in the hippie Dude Love...he catered for a vast demographic. Klayton's virtually the musical embodiment of this; most of you know him through CELLDWELLER, the aggressive alternative rock / drum & bass hybrid...but he too has more than one trick up his sleeve. If he fancies making something far heavier, well he turns to CIRCLE OF DUST, the cold, mechanical, industrial metal monster...but if he wants to tone it down, he's got SCANDROID, the softer 80's inspired synth pop project...he's pretty much got it covered! 2017 see's the return of Celldweller but, not everything is what you'd expect...he's been tweaking again and he's delivered something totally new on his latest album "Offworld"...let's boldly go to where he until recently had, not gone before...

We open up with the title track and we've got a very gentle intro; it's got a deep, somber tone courtesy of minimalist piano play, layered over equally minimal synths, gradually building up in both intensity and emotion, it's almost watery, otherworldly in a sub-aquatic sense and it retains this when Klayton's vocals echo through the tracks murky depths. It's got all the trademark elements of Kalyton's love of all things space and Sci-Fi in it's tone alone and the track itself touches on a longing to get away...get away from this Earth, a new start, a new beginning, escape humanity....it's a very delicate track indeed. The sentiment here is echoed again through the track "Last Night On Earth" which is quite self-explanatory, or should that be planetary? Again though, he speaks of the world not being civilized, he awaits his flight, his ascension, as you witness his rebirth...conceptually a metaphor for this new direction he's taking Celldweller...he's embarking on a new journey and there are no limits and certainly no looking back...

The album is also unafraid to tackle personal issues as well as it exposes a tenderness rarely seen in Klayton's previous works, not to this level at least..."How Little I Must Know" is a perfect example of this...despite it's short, two and a half minute run time it's a beautiful little acoustic driven track; it's incredibly short and sweet but, under that sweet exterior lies a dark and distressed song...it's message is lost and confused, there's a sense of inner struggle and it's incredibly emotional, it's very despairing...it's...quite sad. The same can be said in a sense for "Too Many Tears" (A wonderful THE CALL cover from 1987)...again, a song of hardship and struggle, the pain of failure, the frustration, going to dark places, living through dark times to reach the point he's at and it's almost submissive from Klayton here, again, very emotional stuff, though there's more angst fueling the track and it's more intense as a result.

There are more questionable offerings however..."Mother's Arms" for example, while humble and showing an open, honest, vulnerability within Klayton, again showing an incredibly tender, sincere side we've not previously seen to this extent, at little over a minute long, it's essentially an interlude and for a track to delve so deeply into ones personal state of mind, it would have benefited being a longer track, but we have to remember, it's personal and, we have to respect how comfortable Klayton is as an artist touching upon topics no matter what they are, while "Awakening With You", despite it's catchy, melodic qualities (Imagine an early post-JOY DIVISION demo) does sound like it's lost somewhere between this project and Scandroid...though "Into The Fall" and even more so, "The Great Divide" provide wonderful album highlights returning to the soft, acoustic, almost Western country style...honestly the kind of tracks I wish JOHNNY CASH was still alive to cover...all in all, however much of a departure this is from the norm, here we have a Celldweller album that stands it's ground without needing noise, intensity and massive tunes, it's a very well written and produced album from start to finish...Klayton once again proving his artistic merit, without it ever really being questioned. [7]

Picture
1 Comment
dissertation professional writers link
10/5/2018 01:01:07 pm

This studio album was ready to publishing in the stores of the new market in the limitation of the time. This is the tremendous album which have been now on the ear phone while the playing of songs.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    News & Reviews

    Gavin J Griffiths, a.k.a GavTheGothicChav, lover of new music and supporter of bands. Inspired by a mixture of horror and comedy, and fueled by a blend of alcohol and sarcasm...if you're a singer / in a band and would like a review written up, please do get in touch via the email address at the top of the page and I'll get back to you ASAP. Much love x

    Follow @GavinJGriffiths

      CHAV CHAT

    ASK GAV!

    Archives

    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    January 2016
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014

    Categories

    All
    Acoustic
    Alternative
    Article
    Black Metal
    Blues
    Book
    Classic
    Classic Rock
    Comedy
    Competition
    Compilation
    Country
    Death Metal
    Doom
    Electronic
    Emo
    EP
    France
    Funk
    Games
    Glam Rock
    Gothic
    Grime
    Grunge
    Hardcore
    Hard Rock
    Heavy Metal
    Hip Hop
    Hip-Hop
    Indie
    Industrial
    Interview
    Jazz
    J-Rock
    Melodic Death
    Metal
    Metalcore
    Newport
    New Wave
    Nu Metal
    Nu-Metal
    Pop
    Pop Punk
    Pop-Punk
    Pop Rock
    Post Punk
    Post-Punk
    Prog
    Punk
    Punk Rock
    Rap
    Reggae
    Rock
    Rock 'N' Roll
    Shoegaze
    Ska
    Sludge
    Soft Rock
    Southern Metal
    Southern Rock
    Stoner
    Symphonic Metal
    Synth
    Thrash
    Unsigned
    Urban

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly