Damn, and I was determined to hate this album more than anyone else :|
I first heard Made in Mexico in the first Guitar Hero game. The track was called Farewell Myth, but you all know it as Untitled. I thought it was ok, just not my cup of tea, probably because it's the only MiM song that could ever be considered GH material. Of course in the 2nd GH game they had Yes We Can, and sounding like most of their other material, it was an awful choice for Guitar Hero (as most noise rock is). So I just wrote it off as an abysmal band and went on my way.
Fast forward 2 years, and I promised myself I would review the next album in this thread, which turned out to be Zodiac Zoo. I was saddened, but I begrudgingly asked for the upload.
It was an interesting first listen. Untitled, as I'd heard it before, was the most musical track on the album IMO, and the easiest to get into. I was expecting it to be the best on the album.
Then Infrared Eyes came on, and as most first listeners of noise rock might be, I was taken aback by all the useless noises I thought I was hearing, and the crazy vocals. Halfway through the track it clicked, and I felt that one was better than the first. I listened to the rest of the album and figured it deserved about a 5/10, but I knew I wouldn't get it fully til the 2nd listen. There's a few things I like about this album, let's start with vocals. They are very unorthodox, coming in at seemingly random times and almost never actually singing notes. I love her screams, especially at the start of Napalm Spring. They completely add to the assault on the ears the guitar is performing. The lyrics are very minimalist, at least the ones I heard, so I doubt there's any major premises to be gotten from them. I noticed that the guitar, bass, and drums all have balanced audio, it works well for the band's sound.
So after two listens, I give it a 7/10, and the higlights for me were Untitled, Infrared Eyes, Ultraviolet Arms, and Face of the Earth. Would've been 7.5 if they switched the last two tracks, Black Rabbit was not a good way to end that strong album.
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