(no subject)

[miko2]

Today's Song: Flying Whales by Gojira

I should warn you right from the start that this band is technically a death metal band, and is probably one of the heaviest sounding heavy metal bands on the planet (anyone else who exceeds them in heaviness is probably a more death-metal oriented death metal band, such as Nile or Behemoth). So this is not music that most of my friends would really like, nor is it for the faint of heart. ^_^

That said, Gojira is a unique animal, and not just because he's a giant Tokyo-destroying reptile. This Gojira is a progressive metal band from France with surprisingly intelligent lyrics (for a metal band anyway). They have an album cover that clearly does not conform to the official heavy metal album cover branding code -- an almost sepia-toned picture of a tattooed whale floating past some planets. Their name isn't contorted into a nearly-unreadable heavy metal design either. Why, you might think they were progressive rock like Rush or Porcupine Tree, or maybe even electronica or new age.

This is by design, because despite being a brutally heavy metal band, Gojira is also very creative. They're breaking molds, and doing a good job of it. People do compare them to other bands, such as Mastodon, Neurosis, Meshuggah, Strapping Young Lad, Morbid Angel, Death, Metallica, and Tool. Naturally no band is completely original -- but at least you have a heavy metal band that is not walking the same path as a thousand bands before them. They also write songs about the environment and global warming -- not your usual heavy metal song themes.

But they are powerfully heavy -- as you'd expect from the king of monsters.

That's about all I have to say about them. They won't be everyone's cup of acid, but such an original band deserves more attention. ^_^

Gojira - Flying Whales
Gojira - To Sirius