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I've listened to pretty much everything from Ocean Machine to ZTO basically on repeat since first discovering DTP stuff. I listened to Ki, Addicted, Decon, and CoC a ton when first released, then not really since. I only listened to Ghost a few times. I listened to Epicloud one and a half times and Epiclouder once. Nothing has really set well with me for continued listening since ZTO, though I appreciate what has come after. Devin's changed a lot over the years and his music reflects it, which is great because it means he's making exactly what he wants rather than forcing something. For me, though, it lacks something I can't quite explain that the previous works had. All I can think of is the difference between Star Wars IV-VI and I-III. Both trilogies are huge productions, but one has a notably different tone and impact than the other. I feel that things change once an artist has broadened their talent so much that they can do anything that comes to mind compared to working with a bit more limitation in the earlier times of a discovery/experimentation. It's how I've felt about all my favorite musicians as they've progressed and I find myself disliking their most recent works, especially if they had a notable shift.
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Oct 20, 2014 13:59
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I'll buy the new album I think before giving it a listen. Having newly dived into all this Devin material, I'm thinking Skeksis might be one of the best songs I've heard in a long long time. Also Heatwave off epiclouder is really really good and I wish he would do an entire album in that style. It's kind of silly fun "Cuntry Boner" road trip music. Question: Where the hell is that bass tone coming from on the Alien album ? Seems to hit too low to be a real instrument but perhaps it's from the bass guitar ? Then again I've heard it also on Fear Factory's "Tyrant" song. Don't they share a bass player ?
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Oct 20, 2014 18:53
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jonathan posted:Question: Where the hell is that bass tone coming from on the Alien album ? Seems to hit too low to be a real instrument but perhaps it's from the bass guitar ? Then again I've heard it also on Fear Factory's "Tyrant" song. Don't they share a bass player ? They both had Byron Stroud on bass but (if I remember correctly) he never recorded anything for the album as either Dino or Christian performed the parts in the studio. I think the bass for Alien was recorded using a bass tuned to GCGCE, although it might be GCGCG, to match the guitars.
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Oct 20, 2014 19:17
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il_cornuto posted:Is there anyone who didn't like Epicloud much who likes Sky Blue? I found Epicloud kind of dull and maybe my least favourite Devin album overall, and all the Epicloud + Sky Blue love is making me worried I won't much like Sky Blue either. Sky Blue is kind of a weird beast. It's the same as Epicloud in the sense that it's very much an overall bright album that mixes Devy with female vocals and has a lot going on. If you're more of a fan of HevyDevy and SYL, you might not like SB, because Devin's basically said "I'm not doing brutal anymore." However, SB is more of a straight-through album whereas Epicloud is really a collection of distinct, individual singles that follow the same themes and tone. SB is much more atmospheric and... I dunno, choral? Devin's doing a lot on it I haven't heard him do before (electronic work in the title track, for example). I'd say several tracks actually have a lot of similar hooks and feeling as Synchestra did more than Epicloud. The thing with Devin's recent work is that it really does combine a lot of the elements from his previous albums into a kind of collaborative record, and this is no exception. It's the same... but different, if that makes sense.
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Oct 20, 2014 19:50
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jonathan posted:Having newly dived into all this Devin material, I'm thinking Skeksis might be one of the best songs I've heard in a long long time. I think overall, Skeksis is my favourite song of his ever. It's just absolute chaos.
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Oct 20, 2014 20:53
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il_cornuto posted:Is there anyone who didn't like Epicloud much who likes Sky Blue? I found Epicloud kind of dull and maybe my least favourite Devin album overall, and all the Epicloud + Sky Blue love is making me worried I won't much like Sky Blue either. I actually couldn't get into epicloud at all. Sky Blue is darker and much more cohesive and I find it a much more satisfying album. It's a slow burner too (though it's still the musical equivalent of snorting Kool-Aid powder).
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Oct 20, 2014 21:54
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Cool, I'm excited to hear it again now, I think the atmosphere and cohesion was what was missing from Epicloud for me.
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Oct 20, 2014 22:01
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il_cornuto posted:Cool, I'm excited to hear it again now, I think the atmosphere and cohesion was what was missing from Epicloud for me. I'm another one that wasn't the biggest fan of epicloud/er but am really enjoying Skyblue, perhaps even prefer it to Z2. I don't think you'll be disappointed when you hear it.
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Oct 21, 2014 02:41
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henpod posted:I think overall, Skeksis is my favourite song of his ever. It's just absolute chaos.
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Oct 21, 2014 04:37
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jonathan posted:Question: Where the hell is that bass tone coming from on the Alien album ? Seems to hit too low to be a real instrument but perhaps it's from the bass guitar ? Then again I've heard it also on Fear Factory's "Tyrant" song. Don't they share a bass player ? Combination of the bass tuned down past the point of coherence, Devin not really giving a poo poo about bass in his productions and Devin discovering the magic of the bass drop on that record.
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Oct 21, 2014 05:20
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AzureSkys posted:Me too. The first time I heard it I sat in stunned silence afterwards for a good while. There are no other songs out there as chaotic and huge that also include xylophones. The riff that kicks in for the last minute punches me in the gut even now. God that album came out 9 years ago.
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Oct 21, 2014 06:52
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Although I am not bipolar, I do and have suffered from various levels of depression. Skeksis and also Shitstorm speak to me as if I had written them myself, and then got healthier and looked back at them.
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Oct 21, 2014 07:10
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Sky Blue is really, really great. It may in fact be my favorite DTP album just behind Decon. I agree with the person so said that it is similar to Epicloud but not. Definitely more album flow on this one that really keeps your attention. The song "Fallout" is a God damned masterpiece. After getting hyped up for Dark Matters after hearing Deathray I'm unfortunately less impressed in that side of the album, even compared to ZTO. I'll get more listens to it when the album is actually released, but overall great work by Dev.
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Oct 22, 2014 12:37
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 I went to his guitar clinic and I got to play his guitar. It was loving brilliant and I'm still trying to put my brain back together.
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Oct 22, 2014 14:16
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I'm not really digging any of what I have heard so far but I hope devy is happy and successful.
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Oct 22, 2014 16:56
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TheMirage posted:The song "Fallout" is a God damned masterpiece. Absolutely agreed, it's the standout over both CDs.
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Oct 22, 2014 17:19
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The final mix is floating around now. So much more Anneke in Fallout 
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Oct 23, 2014 00:21
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March of the Poozers
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Oct 23, 2014 01:17
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I haven't been able to get :40 - 1:55 from From Sleep Awake out of my head all day SO GOOD I also didn't think super super highly of Sky Blue first time I went through, but drat has it grown on me, also so good I like Devin Townsend a lot
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Oct 23, 2014 03:09
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If you judged the album listening to the badly mixed leak, I implore you to listen to the proper version. Definitely changed my opinion of the album.
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Oct 23, 2014 10:24
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Quantum of Phallus posted:If you judged the album listening to the badly mixed leak, I implore you to listen to the proper version. Definitely changed my opinion of the album. That different? I was digging the whole thing anyway.
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Oct 23, 2014 11:10
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21 Hoot Salute posted:The final mix is floating around now. Ohhhhhh buddy. I already liked this song as it was.
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Oct 23, 2014 11:20
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Also I've decided to share this here for bragging purposes. I went to Summer Breeze Open Air this past summer and got to meet Devin and had him sign my Canadian passport. I completely lost my cool in the process and then jumped up and down with excitement after I met the rest of the band. Because I'm an adult. 
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Oct 23, 2014 11:23
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Wow! I literally JUST got into Devin Townsend the past month or so, and I sign into SA for the first time in forever, and I see this thread on the first page! Looking forward to going through the OP and posts. I can't believe I haven't listened to him/his projects before
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Oct 23, 2014 15:29
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whats the best way to preorder the z2 album with all the extra discs if im in Canada ? Shipping from America will cost more than the album.
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Oct 23, 2014 19:58
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These albums are loving fantastic. Sky Blue is gorgeous and a great follow-up to Epicloud, and Dark Matters is just the right kind of crazy. I wasn't into Deathray when it was previewed, but it works great in context. Gonna be playing these a lot.
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Oct 24, 2014 05:20
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Cpt. Spring Types posted:These albums are loving fantastic. Sky Blue is gorgeous and a great follow-up to Epicloud, and Dark Matters is just the right kind of crazy. I wasn't into Deathray when it was previewed, but it works great in context. Gonna be playing these a lot. This is absolutely right. Sky Blue is just one great song after another with some great guitar riffs and vocals. It's obviously influenced by a few past albums, but it still manages to sound like its own thing. I love the electronic influences. Then on Dark Matters there are moments that feel very similar to Deconstruction or SYL, so we're treated to a diverse couple of albums that, to me, sound like a culmination of everything he's done up to this point. I will say, though, that I think I'm going to like the sans-narration version of Dark Matters more. Nothing against Devy's theatrics or whatever, but I think the story and dialogue are pretty bad and add nothing. I'm looking forward to being able to more easily hear the music underneath.
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Oct 24, 2014 06:43
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The only dialogue I really liked was "the pain of losing his brother pieced his cold heart" followed by ziltoid saying "ah so lame" That made me smile, the rest I could give or take.
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Oct 24, 2014 08:03
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Hammer Floyd posted:
You're not alone.  Unfortunate goofball snap:  Was rushing trying to get my stash out for singing as everything was going a little late, bombarded him with Retinal Circus boxset, Ki 12", Physicist 12", AE 12", Ocean Machine 12", various CD's I hadn't had signed up to that point and 2 very hard to find SYL-HAARHT promo posters... Maximum Sexy Pigeon fucked around with this message at 09:46 on Oct 24, 2014 |
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Oct 24, 2014 09:43
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I don't play guitar, so going to the guitar clinic was a last minute snap decision. I figured he might just stand around and chat and not play as much guitar and I was so glad I was right because honestly him as a person is the more interesting thing to me. I really enjoyed the event and it was super interesting to just sit there and listen to his view on things.
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Oct 24, 2014 10:52
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I can understand why he was bummed about the wrong version being leaked, the demo version of Fallout is sort of a black eye on an otherwise perfect album. I'm also dying to hear the third disk. If it keeps the lyrics but cuts out the dialogue and narration, it is going to be the album of the loving decade. I enjoyed Dark Matters, but it feels very written-for-stage and it detracts from the music in repeat listens.
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Oct 25, 2014 04:19
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I'm starting to understand the albums now that I've got the proper mix. With Dark Matters, I think you need to abandon your expectations of getting an album like the original Ziltoid. It has a lot more of a focus on the radio story show than I had expected, but it is great at being that. Sky Blue is really starting to come together for me. Half of the tracks are starting to become special. That said... I don't understand it's meaning. Why is this a Ziltoid album? Why isn't Dark Matters "Z2" and Sky Blue its own release?
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Oct 25, 2014 06:36
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I imagine it's like when he did AE and the SYL self-titled at the same time, but decided that doing one double/triple album was easier or less expensive than doing two separate albums.
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Oct 26, 2014 20:02
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Wow, here is a complete answer for you on "z2" taken from an Interview he shared on his Facebook page today... " If “Z2” was the second part of an equation, what would the first part be? I think the whole idea is that “Z2” is the end of a math equation that I’ve become fascinated by, while I was making “Alien” by Strapping Young Lad. It was a program that I saw on television that said that there’s a mathematician that has solved this theoremwith the very simple idea of ‘x2 + y2 = z2’. And even though I don’t technically understand how that happens, the concept of it just seems so elegant and beautiful. So, “Z2” does not only means “Ziltoid 2”, obviously... but it also goes back to that math equation which solved this thing that connected two ways of thinking that previously were disconnected. So, that just seemed like a really appropriate title."
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Oct 26, 2014 20:28
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Just finished my first listen of Zē. It's... not really what I was expecting, and I'm probably an idiot. In a few places in Ziltoid, there was this really majestic space opera sense to it, a hint of the unknown, a just-barely fleshed out universe, searing with neon and mystery. Ziltoid was 100% about trying to fathom the unfathomable. This is just... Epicloud with aliens. Time to give Sky Blue a try.
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Oct 27, 2014 08:03
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Where is my AutoRip copy Amazon? The MP3 album is already up in the store. Don't make me wait until the CD arrives. 
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Oct 27, 2014 08:16
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horse mans posted:Just finished my first listen of Zē. It's... not really what I was expecting, and I'm probably an idiot. In a few places in Ziltoid, there was this really majestic space opera sense to it, a hint of the unknown, a just-barely fleshed out universe, searing with neon and mystery. Ziltoid was 100% about trying to fathom the unfathomable. This is just... Epicloud with aliens. The raw version of Z2 is much better, imho, and has moments that remind me of ZTO, but I have the same feeling. March of the Poozers Raw is seriously awesome and seems a good companion to Juular. I only listened to Sky Blue once and nothing really caught me, other than a few nice moments here and there. Both seem super busy and there's a lot of constant choral work without those moments ZTO had of openness, introspection and intensity build up. Overall, they felt like B-sides to Addicted/Deconstruction/Epicloud. He's definitely honing in on a certain sound. It seems he's removing himself (which he's hinted at wanting for a while now)and going more all out with grand compositions for choirs and orchestras, which is great as he's super talented in doing so. It just leaves me missing the parts I've loved in his music and accept that the AE/Terria style of guitar work and tone is long past. You know, I'd kind of like to see him go the Danny Elfman route and make movie soundtracks.
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Oct 27, 2014 08:46
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He said on twitter the other day that he was getting sick of his own voice, so that kind of explains that. Having said that, I think I prefer the version of Fallout with him on the chorus over the version with Anneke.
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Oct 27, 2014 09:20
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Sky Blue did nothing for me until I cranked the volume, but then I loved it. I can't believe how many layers Devin crams into his music. Rain City is the best. For Dark Matters: War Princess, Death Ray, and March of the Poozers is my favorite series of songs from a recent album. 5:45 in War Princess blows my mind every time, Death Ray is the quintessential "Ziltoid" track of the album, and March of the Poozers is just goddamned incredible. Earth and Ziltoid Goes Home make another incredible sequence. But its true that there are a few tracks that are almost entirely narration and dialogue that aren't worth keeping in a playlist at all. I haven't picked up the third disk yet. Willeh posted:Having said that, I think I prefer the version of Fallout with him on the chorus over the version with Anneke.
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Oct 27, 2014 13:09
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I bought the album off iTunes, but it didn't include the Dialogue-Free disc. Where could I pick just that up online?
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Oct 27, 2014 13:20
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