March 21, 2010

Reviewer: Roswell47

It is no secret that The Dillinger Escape Plan has had its share of lineup changes over the years. In fact, guitarist Ben Weinman is the only original member left. To most fans, the most glaring lineup change came with the introduction of new vocalist Greg Puciato on Miss Machine in 2004. This album became the proverbial line in the sand for many of the band's fans. Mike Patton had been a guest vocalist on the 2002 Irony is a Dead Scene EP and through that release, fans had gotten a taste of what DEP would be like with a more diverse vocalist than original screamer Dimitri Minakakis. The Patton-fronted EP served as an introduction to some of the changes that would soon polarize fans once Puciato would record with DEP. (Around the time of Irony's release most fans probably had not heard Puciato sing with DEP, even though he was already performing with them by that point. The Patton EP was already in the works when they were searching for a permanent vocalist and found Puciato.) Despite the changes introduced on the Irony EP, it was a bit of a surprise to many fans when DEP essentially continued in the same direction with Puciato on their next full-length, Miss Machine. Not only did the new guy sound more than a little like Patton (and look like a football jock to boot), but the band also started changing the way it wrote songs. They seemed to be taking inspiration from the time they spent touring with Mr. Bungle and recording with Mike Patton. Their spazzy mathcore roots were still very much intact, but melodic pop structures were becoming more and more prevalent on Miss Machine, even if they were bizarre melodic pop structures. To the dismay of many fans, when Ire Works followed in 2007, it continued even further down this melodic path. "Black Bubblegum" anyone?

With the release of Option Paralysis, DEP is not doing anything to pacify fans of the Calculating Infinity sound. In fact, they are going even further down the road they began travelling with Miss Machine and continued with Ire Works. The spastic rhythms and insane "Flight of the Bumblebee" guitar runs from the Calculating days are still there. However, so are most of the elements from the past two albums. We still get Puciato's Patton-style nasally vocals and occasional falsetto, although we are spared the "almost too much to stomach" falsetto that appeared in Ire Work's "Black Bubblegum." Option Paralysis throws us a few curveballs, like the piano balladry in "Widower" or the regular ole classic rock guitar solo at the end of "Parasitic Twins," but overall Option Paralysis is not a great leap forward from their previous two albums.

I happen to love the direction that DEP began with Miss Machine. Although Calculating Infinity will probably always be my favorite DEP album, I think a change in sound was necessary for the band's survival. They needed to grow in order to keep things interesting for both them and the fans who have chosen to stick around. It is unfortunate that the Puciato-fronted DEP has spawned a new strain of annoying neon-clad, bear-wrestling imitators, but all great innovators are going to inspire others, for better or worse. As for the current sound of DEP, if you jumped ship with Miss Machine, you'll want to keep swimming in the opposite direction. If you're still on board, stick around and let's see where the crew takes us.

Release Date: March 23, 2010
Label: Season of Mist / Party Smasher

TRACK LISTING

1.  Farewell, Mona Lisa
2.  Good Neighbor
3.  Gold Teeth on a Bum
4.  Crystal Morning
5.  Endless Endings
6.  Widower
7.  Room Full of Eyes
8.  Chinese Whispers
9.  I Wouldn't If You Didn't
10.  Parasitic Twins

Total playing time:  41:47

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The Dillinger Escape Plan - Option Paralysis