I downloaded it. It's only 7 tracks, as Part II will be released at some point. My review:
Background:
I was always a Limp Bizkit fan, though never much of a Fred Durst fan. The band has always been great for me, and I even liked what Fred was doing on the first two albums. I didn't like the album without Wes much, and stopped buying the albums after Significant Other (yep, only own the first two). Significant Other is a classic album to me (mainly because it came out at the right time in my life for me to get some great memories with it). It's got everything I wanted Limp Bizkit to be, and it really feels like Wes' album to me. Layers of guitars, huge sound overall, and even some cool guest spots. And to be honest, I like Fred better singing and screaming than rapping.
The songs:
"The Propaganda"
Some cool fast guitar work in the intro/verses, and the bass and drums are tight as usual. Lots of trem-picking in the guitars. Almost a thrashy sound on the guitars. The chorus is very typical of Limp Bizkit. The bridge is cool, heavy, including a drone-y guitar solo. DJ Lethal's parts are really subtle, and the band sounds raw and full of energy. Some interesting whammy-dives on this one, reminiscent of Wes' work on "Chocolate Starfish...", though if the pictures that were on the site a while back say anything, this album is mainly Jackson RRs through Diezels and a bunch of pedals. Nothing special from Fred.
"The Truth"
Some atmospheric sounds from DJ Lethal start it off, until John Otto (drums) clicks Sam in on bass. This song builds extremely well, gradually adding things one by one, until they hit a really cool heavy chorus riff. Wes and Sam have a really cool sound going on the verses. DJ Lethal, again, doesn't have much obvious going on in this song. The energy and sound of the band is awesome though again. The bridge takes a bit of a different sound, with DJ Lethal triggering some chanting/choir samples. Wes blends the bridge back into the chorus using the same riff they started the song with while Sam continues the bridge's bass line. Again nothing special from Fred.
"The Priest"
Starts out with soft bass chords, some noise droning from DJ Lethal, and Fred monologue-ing over it, and some people yelling things in the background (perhaps bleeding through the drum mics?). The heavier moments keep the droning feel going, and add an awesome angry energy to it. Fred's lyrics are really political on this one, including references to terrorism, Dimebag, and of course, priests. The bridge is really emotional, which I gotta say I respect for a band that's been around as long as they have. Even Korn seems to be losing their edge, but Limp Bizkit is finding new things to get angry about, and it's working. The song ends with the sound of marching feet, and a marching band/crowd.
"The Key"
A straightforward rap song basically. But not radio-friendly rap, not 50-cent/G-unit/whatever. Really angry, edgy rap with some real depth to it. I'd say it's Fred's best moment on the album. And definitely the best track DJ Lethal's come up with.
"The Channel"
A typical Wes riff, very twisted sounding. A slow-ish groove on this one. A little monotonous overall, and almost gets boring, but then you hit the chorus which breaks it up a bit. Has a cool little melody to it on the guitar. You can tell this is an album that came from the band jamming out in their rehearsal space. But that's what the band was always about in my opinion, and they lost that for a couple albums.
"The Story"
At this point the album's starting to get a little "more of the same"-y. Good riffs, good energy, raw recording (leaving in count-in clicks from drum-kit and voices yelling in background when it happens). It's a really live sounding album, but the songs start to blend a little and sound the same. I almost didn't notice a new song had started except that I vaguely remembered a gap of silence between this song and the last.
"The Surrender"
This song saves it from monotony. Cool clean
baritone guitar, harmonica (sample I'm guessing), and Fred singing out of key in places. This could be a cool song...with a real singer. Mainly just guitar and voice with some sound effects. Cool atmosphere overall, and a neat little guitar solo (kind of Nine Inch Nails sounding).
Overall:
Sometimes things sound a little overcompressed (the first song mainly, where the kick drum seems to bring everything else down slightly every time it hits), but otherwise the production and mix is good. It's a really raw album. However: Fred does more harm than good on this one. The rapping is really dull sounding in places, though his energy picks up in the middle of the album and has some good points. But it dies off again, and his choice of melody on the last track is just terrible. Wes seems to have ditched the effects on this album, sticking to just clean and
distorted tones. It's cool, but it loses some of what I really liked about Wes' playing: the interesting, experimental sounds. Where's the keyboards he brought to the rehearsal space? Where's a single one of the effects from the giant pedal board he had in the studio? The energy is cool, and it sounds like the band just jamming out in the studio (vocals were done on a handheld dynamic mic, a Beta57 I believe, rather than a condensor). You can hear that Wes has picked up some more metal influences during his time off, and his relationship with Danny Lohner and the rest of the Tool/APC/NIN camp has definitely influenced his playing in places as well. I can only hope that Part II will be the other side of the coin: more layered and experimental, while this is raw and groove/riff-based. Oh, and at 7 tracks and 29 minutes, it's really really short.
The Final Word:
I don't think I'll be buying it. Knowing Fred's business sense, there will likely be a re-issue or re-packaging of some sort when part II comes out, so I might consider picking up that if/when it comes. I'll keep waiting for Wes' solo album, while continuing to mourn the loss of Big Dumb Face, Eat The Day, and The Damning Well (his three other bands which are officially "on hold" but are basically done).
