Release Date - 12th May 2008 Record Label - Warner Music UK Ltd. Track List: 1. Showdown (5:27) 2. Different (5:51) 3. Propane Nightmares (5:13) 4. Visions (5:36) 5. Midnight Runner (6:55) 6. The Other Side (5:15) 7. Mutiny (5:09) 8. 9,000 Miles (6:26) 9. Granite (4:41) 10. The Tempest (7:27)
Play length for each track is taken from the iTunes website.
This is a brilliant album, although it takes a few listens to get really used to! Pendulum's style has changed slightly since Hold Your Colour, and now involves more tune and vocal work than before. The drum'n'bass is still there, but not as much emphasis is put on that as on previous tracks.
My personal favourites are:
Different - Great tune, and great vocals. Similar in style to 'Hold Your Colour' (the track, not the album), and would be very good to see live.
Propane Nightmares - This one took a while to get used to, but the non-vocal part starting at 4:02 is fantastic, and a real club tune. Very memorable, and really shows how Pendulum have moved on as a band.
The Other Side - The vocals here are similar to those of Daft Punk's 'Digital Love', which is one of their best tunes in my opinion. This helps to create a unique melody, and builds up the song to make it one of the more original songs in this album. The two other voices in this track are an example of how Pendulum is still the same band as it was a few years ago, using other voices in their tracks to improve it, and make their songs more unique!
9,000 Miles - My personal favourite on this album! If you liked 'Girl In The Fire' in Hold Your Colour, the chances are you will love this. It's one of the quietest tracks in the album, but along with a good drum beat during the middle, has a fantastic (yet short) vocal section at 1:27, after the song is built up slowly. Then, at 1:50, say hello to the new 'Girl In The Fire'! This track should be an absolute classic, while it is one of the calmer ones in the album, it feels very natural and is pretty relaxing, even with the volume cranked up. This track really changed my mind about the album, it's a good bridge between the old and the new Pendulum.
Granite - Great beat, great tune, great vocals. If you're looking at this album, chances are you've heard it, and it really is very good. Builds up to a great climax at the end of the track, this is a great club tune and will be heard everywhere this summer!
The Tempest - Interesting guitar section at the start, and although I was surprised at the first vocals, it improves throughout the track, and you can feel the tension building up throughout it. A well structured song, and long enough for everyone to be satisfied. Fades off at about 5:12, but comes back with a great 'club' section, for a couple of minutes. Drum'n'bass fans will love the last parts, and fans of the newer, more vocal Pendulum will be more interested in the first part of the track. Finishes the album off with style!
The other tracks are less memorable for me, and although they are all good, the highlights for me are the ones above. The weakest track in the album, for me, is Mutiny. This is because it lacks any special 'hook' that the other songs have, and so it isn't as memorable.
Sound quality is very good throughout - there are no changes in volume and it's been produced very professionally. The gaps between each song are adequate, without being too long.
The cover art for this album is very original and eye-catching, you won't miss it if you're looking for it!
There will be many people who aren't impressed by this album, because it is a little different from the last one. I think that's really sad - drum'n'bass is a very small genre, and it has a pretty small fan base to go with it. While I'm not saying it's a bad genre, it didn't leave much room for Pendulum to get itself known, and I really think they've done the right thing. Sure, this album is more mainstream, but surely that means more people will like it, meaning it is a good album?
Pendulum have mixed several genres brilliantly here, such as drum'n'bass, rock, techno, trance, pop, and have shown how great they can be.
I really look forward to any future tracks from this band, as they are really worth the hype they've been getting recently. They will be BIG this summer!
In Silico
In Silico might be the second album from Pendulum, but it's their first as a fully-fledged
... more
rock band. Of course, this Australian dance collective have paddled in these waters before: their debut album Hold Your Colour was a muscular collection of hard ...
IN SILICO
'In Silicio' is the second album from Australian drum and bass outfit Pendulum. Best known
... more
for their heavy beats and menacing basslines, the follow up to 2007's debut 'Hold Your Colour' is a much bolder album, mixing various styles together, from rock ...
In Silico - Pendulum
In Silico might be the second album from Pendulum, but it's their first as a fully-fledged
... more
rock band. Of course, this Australian dance collective have paddled in these waters before: their debut album Hold Your Colour was a muscular collection of hard ...
