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Genre: Power/Progressive/Thrash Metal Release Date: 2010 Label: 2/5 Gone Records Band Web Site: http://www.division-usa.com
A bit about Division: This power/progressive outfit hails from the Washington, D.C/Baltimore, Maryland area. They have a long tradition of playing power/progressive metal in the local club scene, especially at Jaxx Nightclub in Springfield, Virginia. The band started in 1995, and has undergone a few lineup changes during the past 15 or so years. The band has also been featured at festivals such as Midwest Metal Anthem in Lansing, Illinois. The band also shared the stage with such powerhouses in the metal scene as Testament, Nevermore, Kamelot, Dio, King Diamond, Bruce Dickinson, Symphony X, and Iced Earth, amongst others. Needless to say, much of their music also takes influences from such well known names in heavy metal.
Upon initial impressions of the new album, I've noticed that it seems to take a heavier, thrashier route than their previous release, the excellent Trinity, which was released back in 2004. Also, another very good impression was the overall sound and production quality of this album. First, the front of the package is graced by some really cool album art provided by Tom Fleming. Not only that, but the sound on the album is very well mixed and produced. The vocals appear front and center as they should be. Each instrument is given its own space, with no one particularly crowding out the others. This gives each member of the band a chance to showcase his particular talent on this album. On a good sound system, the listener should have no trouble clearly hearing every instrument featured on this album. For reference, I am listening to this on a stereo rig that costs more than most people's cars, so if there are any flaws in a particular recording, I'll know immediately.
And speaking of the band member's talents, vocalist Nick Kelly's gritty voice lends itself very well to the somewhat darker material presented on this album. Not only that, but there is some pretty sweet bass riffing provided by Ron Cummings-Kralik. Plenty of guitar solos abound, provided by Mike Blevins and Dave Evans. Of course, no metal album is complete without the thunderous drumming given to us by James Goetz, providing the raw energy needed to back this thing up.
Be forewarned – if you are not careful, you could end up with a very sore neck from all the headbanging opportunities this album provides. Not only that, if you listen to this on a stereo with some serious amplification, be prepared to get your hair blown back! Cranked up, this thing may just peel the paint back from the walls and crack the plaster (and seriously piss off the neighbors)! With that out of the way...
The album starts off with “Hunt.” This is a pretty heavy, but thrashy mid-tempo track that does a good job to set the overall tone of this album. Of course, like all the tracks that will follow, this track is not complete without a ripping guitar solo. This is also the “single” that the band was fond of showcasing at the various live shows they performed at over the past few years.
Next comes “Perfect Little Slave.” This is a slower, more melodic track compared to the more thrashy-sounding “Hunt” that came before it. This still proves the band is quite capable of producing good melodic tracks for those that like a bit less thrash in their music.
After “Perfect Little Slave” comes the third track, “Short Attention Span Society,” to really kick this thing in the rear. This is one heavy, fast track, with some serious thrashing going on here. Definitely one to crank up and headbang to, especially if you got a stereo with some balls behind it!
The forth track, “Soulmate,” slows it down a little bit, but still maintains the overall heaviness of this album.
“Collector” kicks off with a sweet guitar riff and goes right into a guitar solo before Nick comes in with his trademark gritty vocals here. Another good heavy, thrashy track to get the head really moving!
Next up comes what is probably my favorite track on Control Issues, “Gemini.” This track starts out with one really killer bass riff and just builds from there. The first time I heard this at a live show, I was blown away (and it resulted in me doing some pestering of the band to get them to play it again at future shows). Not only does it have some nice melodic moments, but also the trademark heaviness of this album continues along with some thrash trappings thrown in for good measure.
Now comes track seven, “Feast.” Another heavy, thrashy number, with one really sick guitar solo after the first verse. This track also features some pretty old-school metal sounds as well, like I remember hearing back in the 80s during my high school years, yet at the same time the track still remains quite modern and very fresh sounding.
Track number eight, “Future In Your Eyes”; yet another really heavy track, but a bit more melodic than the previous track. Another one of my favorites off of this album. This is one of those tracks that just seems to flow really well and it’s a track you can really groove to and enjoy. Also, there are plenty of headbanging moments throughout. It does seem to harken back to the sound of their previous offering, Trinity. This is just one bad-ass track and probably the highlight of the album.
Next comes “.45 Intent,” which again starts out with a really sweet bass riff. It is really cool and refreshing to see the often neglected bass guitar being featured so prominently on an album like this. This is another one of those pretty old-school sounding tracks that is melodic, but has plenty of thrash moments.
Track ten, “Bloodletting,” returns back to the more melodic sound that was found on the previous album. It’s another one of those tracks that is fun to just sit back and groove and headbang to.
And last but not least, this album finishes up with the 11th and final track, “Burning Bright.” As per the course, this is another decidedly heavy track, complete with its own thrashy moments as well, although it seemed to end a bit abruptly on this preview copy that I've received from the band, as though the track got prematurely cut-off. Is that intentional? Anyway, this track provides a good solid wrap-up to this very solid offering.
If there are any gripes to be found, they are few and far between. One particular gripe is that the grittiness of the vocals does make it difficult to pick out and listen to the lyrics themselves. As a result, without the aid of a lyric sheet, I was not able to really make comments on the lyrical content of the album. From what I can make out, this album does seem to contain some pretty dark-sounding lyrics. Also, and this is really splitting (long) hairs here, some folks may prefer the more melodic sound of the previous album, Trinity, over the heavier, thrashy trappings of Control Issues. Also, there is nothing truly ground-breaking here either that has not been done before by others, but what is offered here is very good and well-done. Additionally, those that may like to hear symphonic elements in their music will be sorely disappointed, as there are no keyboards of any kind on here. It is all guitars and drums here, with the typical male “metal” vocals. Now, this may actually be a positive for those that don't like keyboards in their metal, but something to take into consideration if you like that kind of element or would like to hear more variety in the instrumentation of your music.
Overall, I found this to be an excellent, solid offering from this talented group of musicians. Fans of Division, especially the current lineup, will really enjoy this album, as well as those metalheads that just love a good heavy dose of power/prog/thrash metal with some old-school trappings. Just don't expect anything truly original or groundbreaking here. For a good solid offering of some excellent straight-up, no-nonsense heavy metal, I would recommend giving this a try. I give it a 4 out of 5 devil-horns (m/m/m/m/).
Pros: Excellent production. Good, solid musicianship overall. Some really sweet guitar solos as well as excellent bass riffing throughout. Very nice cover art.
Cons: Nothing particularly original from a purely musical standpoint. Vocals can be somewhat difficult to understand if you want to listen for the lyrics. Hopefully there will be a lyric sheet included in shipping copies of this.
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Division - Control Issues
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