I’m a 23 year old Art History student from England. I also practice Shaolin Kung Fu at my local gym,...
I’m a 23 year old Art History student from England. I also practice Shaolin Kung Fu at my local gym, and I previously worked as a DJ for a small night-club. I aspire to be a novelist, and am a Very Opinionated Young Man. In a nutshell. ;)
Member since:06.02.2004
Reviews:3
Members who trust:1
Thirteenth Step is a twelve-track album with no secret track.
A Perfect Circle may well be familiar to you if you are a fan of Tool, although it is not, as many people think, the side-project of Tool-singer Maynard James Keenan. Maynard is, however, the lead singer in both bands. A Perfect Circle was founded by guitarist Billy Howerdel who also has worked with Tool. In their debut album, the similarities to Tool were obvious. Not so much with this one.
Thirteenth Step came as a great surprise to me. The first time I listened to it, I didn't like it at all. I was disappointed and felt that it lacked that certain aggressive edge that the previous album had, but like good wine it improved over time.
After listening through it a few times, one thing struck me above all others. The production. The sound on this CD is amazing; layer upon layer of sound effortlessly supports a crescendo of tightly leashed emotion. Crisp high frequencies twinkle like stars in a clear night sky over waves of deep whispers and drums. This may sound over-the-top and emotional, but if you have a proper sound system, and an ear for this kind of thing, then put on the third track, 'The Noose', and you will instantly understand what I'm going on about.
In general the songs have a very fragile feel to them. They convey a feeling of genuine emotion. Most of the tracks are down-tempo, and there are some very nice acoustic guitars at various points in time. The singing of Maynard James Keenan is, as always, magical.
If you liked their previous album, Mer de Noms because it sounded like Tool, you may very well be disappointed in Thirteenth Step. There are not a lot of distorted guitars, there is very little screaming and growling, and the drumming is not quite as impressive as what you'd expect from Tool. Although it in its exploration of the darker sides of the human psyche has its aggressive moments, you can forget head banging to this.
It is a complicated album. I'm going to say straight away that it's not for everyone. Neither those who listen to mainstream pop nor those who solely listen to metal. This would normally be a reason to award less than five stars, but the fact remains that it is probably the best album I've ever heard.
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Great first review though perhaps lacking a little detail
mattydalton 07.02.2004 06:21
Welcome to Ciao!!
edd101 06.02.2004 20:57
Welcome to Ciao:-)!Not a bad first review, keep it up and you will do well, although when writing about an album some people wont vote vh unless you have a little bit about each track. Im a big tool fan and i expected this album to sound very like them, to be honest it doesnt even sound like Maynard singing!Nice op. Edd:-)
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