Today, October 2nd, marked Machine Head's signing to Nuclear Blast Entertainment, their third collaboration with A&R extraordinaire and Roadrunner alumni Monte Connor. There are many substantial bits of business to discuss concerning this news, be it that this is another major name leaving what is left of Roadrunner/Warner Music, the fact that with a lineup change and a label change this could be considered yet another fresh start for the group, or speculation about what this will mean for the artists that remain signed to RR. That isn't what we're talking about here. What follows is a reaction to a disturbing trend seen in the comments on many of the pieces on other sites covering this news. Buried in the press release is a snippet about how Machine Head are returning to the studio shortly to record their eighth studio album, and within many a comment section the general consensus seemed to be that it needed to be a really good album, not because we expect as much from metal royalty, but because Unto the Locust was a disappointment.
It is certainly easy for someone to end up on the wrong side of history, but this simply didn't seem right.
Ultimately, to a certain extent, it's pointless to get riled up about anything in a comment section. Undoubtedly if Unto the Locust had been The Blackening Part 2 a segment of people would've complained, and because it isn't just The Blackening Part 2 another segment of people is now complaining. This is the nature of comment threads on the Internet. But I've heard this from sections of the legitimate press as well, as well as discussion of a disappointing downward trend in ticket sales while on tour. The latter complaint is irrelevant to a discussion of Unto the Locust's quality. The reality is that three years worth of touring and slots with Metallica are going to pale in comparison to headlining tours with much smaller bands, especially when weeks worth of dates have to be cancelled due to Robb Flynn's health problems (including a Fargo show that I was thankfully unable to attend regardless). Machine Head still headlined the Soundwave, Wacken and Bloodstock festivals overseas and did slots at Download, Graspop and Metalcamp in addition to headlining tours over here and nabbing a spot on the major Rockstar Mayhem Festival.
That's entirely too much evidence presented for a point which didn't deserve to be included in this argument, but a proven point is a proven point.
To a certain extent, it could be that Machine Head fans are still frightened of change. Anybody who knows anything about this band probably has a Supercharger joke ready, and rightfully so. Songs from both The Burning Red and Supercharger have survived through the years and have found a place in current live setlists, but as albums, and especially after Burn My Eyes, they're undoubtedly...well, not what people wanted or deserved. As audacious as The Blackening was, it is certainly a brutal metal record through and through. So when Unto the Locust appeared with a sonata complete with choirs and strings, a ballad, and Robb Flynn's children singing, fans might have gotten a little gunshy. Unfortunately, if this is the case, prior mistakes blinded them to a very natural progression. I Am Hell, the aforementioned sonata, is almost punishingly heavy, and the strings only serve to heighten the melancholy. Robb Flynn's children sing on the best song on the album, a classic call to arms anthem called Who We Are. There's also plenty of classic Machine Head grooves on here, particularly in the fist pumping title track. Even the ballad, which is a fairly somber affair in case the title Darkness Within didn't clue you into that fact, isn't a lovelorn tale of past relationships or anything like that. It just proves difficult after even a cursory listen to see what Machine Head fans feel is missing. This isn't a masterpiece, but it's a damn fine album, easily on the level of more beloved efforts like Through the Ashes of Empires and arguably (bear with me) Burn My Eyes. Yet people seem to regard it as a misstep.
Their loss I guess. Here's to the forthcoming album being everything everybody wants it to be. It's almost guaranteed to be a Heavier than Hell favorite.
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