The New Black

...but not exactly there.

Alright, so basically what a lot of S.Y.L fans are saying is "WE WANT A CITY 2!" Well, sorry folks, but Dev himself said that ain't happening. Luck for us however, this album actually does a decent job of capturing the intensity of that record. However, it does it in a new sort of way. Instead of just being crushing industrial metal/grind, we get a much more traditional vibe, almost as if this were a basic heavy metal album, complete with pretty heavy riffage and...solos all over? Yep, S.Y.L are doin' solos, almost as if this was a whole record of We Ride. As for comparing to older songs, they're also pretty similar to AAA and Love? Now is this good or bad? Well, read on...

Decimator- 8/10- Well, this certainly isn't Imperial by any means, but you can tell that there's a much higher usage of more technical riffage that sound like solos, rather than chug. Either you'll like it, or you won't, but it does a great job of still keeping the intensity that SYL is known for. They even chant "S...Y...L!" later on in the song, which is a real cool part. The vocal delivery by Dev is done really nicely on this song too!

You Suck- 9/10- This song's just plain hilarious. Basically sounds just like the title states, and the lyrics show it in the most humorous way. Nice seeing SYL doing a funny song once again. There's some real kick ass riffage going on, especially at 1:31! Almost sounds like Alien! The chorus is just plain great, and the solo at 1:14 is totally sweet...! Great shit, and awesome for if you're really pissed off at somebody.

The Antiproduct- 10/10- I freakin' love this song! The beginning is pretty damn intense and almost sounds like something that would come from City. Then the rest of the song sounds basically like AAA with more guitar work going on. Again, more awesome vocals coming from Dev. The song all around is pretty catchy in itself. Dev also sounds pretty sinister when he goes into his more whispering voice. Then later on in the song, at 2:05, we get some kick-ass keyboards, and then 2:16, we get a hilarious yet awesome jazz section that really sounds great and actually fits the song pretty well. Probably the closest to City that Dev has gotten so far to me.

Monument- 9/10- This song is also really good, with a rip-your-face-off opening riff, and that same style of riff basically tearing you apart throughout. Thought the package isn't as cool as the last song, it can certainly stand on it's own. More through the middle though, it's a lot less intense and just sounds like "chug-chug," but there's plenty of awesome to keep you interested. I'm not really impressed with the lyrics either, but it's SYL, so that's not really anything we haven't heard before.

Wrong Side- 10/10- We Ride: The Sequel. It basically sounds a lot like that song, but in plenty of ways, better! Much more intense, faster, and actually more technical! REALLY dig that chorus! Good thing that this song is so awesome, because it definitely deserves a music video! Plus the solo totally shreds and is done excellently, and I love Dev's clean passages in this one, with atmosphere that almost sounds like it would come out of The Dark Crystal (since Dev's a big fan of that movie). Fantastic song!

Hope- 6/10- Whoa, what the hell? Now in my opinion, this is probably the weakest track on the album. I know AAA was pretty slow for SYL standards, but wow, this almost goes TOO slow. It's hardly even heavy. It kinda builds up later on, but it just goes pretty slow throughout, and is actually kinda boring. The only thing I really enjoy about it is the fact that Dev's clean sections are really nice to listen to. The keyboards are kinda cool, but this is pretty much straight-up boring chug-chug. 3:00 into it is pretty cool though, and it actually ends pretty well, but the rest of the song isn't really all too great.

Far Beyond Metal- 8/10- Now I know what you're probably thinking. "HOLY CRAP! A STUDIO RECORDING OF FAR BEYOND METAL?! SCHNIKES!!" But I assure you, this certainly doesn't top the original. The intensity in the original is sort of lost in the production. Some of the lyric changes are crap, and Oderus's guest appearance is slightly underwhelming and not too surprising. The good points? The riffage is still pretty tight and catchy, and "Oh you ironic pop-rock fuck! Don't you FUCK with metal!!" Is probably the funniest thing off the album to me. The first line (and the repeats of it throughout) sound kind of awkward without the "King...Raul wang!" part. The clean parts are yet again done fantastically too. Gotta love Dev's clean voice. Plus I kinda miss the introduction, because that kinda ruins the point. 'Cause hey, this is all about the cheesy announcing and riffing in metal! Oh well, it's still pretty awesome, especially for people who haven't heard this on No Sleep 'Til Bedtime.

Fucker- 7/10- Mmm, pretty decent I'd say. The opening riff is pretty nice, and it is fairly intense. Bif Naked's guest appearance is pretty damn cool I'll admit, and the second part after all the "FUCKER"s in the chorus is pretty sweet...! Dev really kills on vocals on this album, though of course it's not like...as stellar as Alien anyway. Some of the riffs in this song are pretty killer too, so it's a fun little song. Plus the solo is AWESOME. Will probably be considered the most underrated song on the album.

Almost Again- 10/10- You know how we thought that SYL were screwing with our minds with Two Weeks? Well, this is kinda like that in that sense, because it's probably much more soft in nature, though not in the fact that it's an acoustic ballad, no, it's straight up metal. However, I assure you, it's catchy, and a DAMN good song, with probably the best vocals on the album. Plus the chorus goes freakin' PWWOOOMM, almost as if it were trying to BE the speed of sound as it implies. And are those girl vocals I hear? Pretty sure THAT'S not Bif Naked, but good stuff! 1:55 really sounds crushing too! I love when it REALLY gets intense like that! The last version of the chorus is really awesome to listen to as well, and ends as if it were off one of Dev's solo albums combined with a rock being blown up by a cannon.

Polyphony- 9/10- Whoa, a reverberation of the beginning riff on Judgement! Hmm, Dev's vocals are real interesting on this one. Kinda creepy almost, but very nicely down. As it goes through that part, it seems to get into a more beautiful sounding part, with even BETTER vocals, and then it kicks into high gear! This song was really excellently done for an intro to The New Black, which...

The New Black- 8/10- ...actually doesn't seem as impressive as the song that opens it up. Though of course it's not bad, definitely. Starts off with some faster-paced chug-a-chug, and building up with Dev screaming as usual and adding some more to the riffage and adding keyboard effects. Sounds pretty cool, but suffers from lack of intensity and just sounding like straight up chuggin'. Doesn't really serve as a booming title track, but it's pretty damn good in it's own right. 2:22's clean section sounds fantastic especially! Kinda reminds me of Physicist in a way. In fact, now that I mention, you kinda get that feeling through most of the album...! Then 3:14 comes around, and it REALLY sounds like it's building up to start kicking your ass, and surely enough this section comes in and rips you to shreds, stopping with that insatiable chugging and thrashing in your face! The keyboards on this part sound quite sinister, and then Dev breaks out with a KILLER clean section! Then it does this crazy sounding keyboard combined with riffage and fades out with only just those keyboards going at it with some noise action closing the album that sounds pretty far out and actually oddly disturbing. Good, but it kinda took a bit to build up.

So in summation, this is pretty much what most of the people who didn't like SYL wanted, more concentration on riffs and more intensity. Well, they hit those in some of the songs, and even in some parts they get it practically perfect, but it's spread out kinda crapily. Though I can't really blame Dev, 'cause he's been working his ass off making excellent album after another. This is almost like his "I need a break, but I'm going out with style!" album, though that just only slightly fills you with disappointment, as with the way this was made, you'll be begging for something better when he gets back from his hiatus for taking care of his child. Thankfully, this album is QUITE an improvement over the self-titled, and there's plenty of fun and great moments to warrant a listen.

Highlights: You Suck, The Antiproduct, Wrong Side, Almost Again, Polyphony

(unfortunately, the bonuses weren't out on the promo...obviously, so those'll have to be taken care of by someone else)