The End Of All Things To Come

The artist credits on Mudvayne's second major-label album, The End of All Things to Come (not to be confused with the 2001 reissue of its 1997 indie album, Kill I Oughtta, retitled The Beginning of All Things to End), might suggest that the band has undergone a complete personnel change, but in fact the group members have just changed their pseudonyms. Singer Kud now calls himself Chud, guitarist Gurrg has become Guug, bassist Ryknow is R-uD, and drummer sPaG is Spug. Otherwise, not much has changed for the band in the two years since its first album for Epic Records, L.D. 50. The musicians still churn out standard-issue heavy metal thrash a la Metallica to support Chud's nihilistic pronouncements, usually sung in an enraged howl. But much else has changed surrounding the band. A year and a half's worth of gigs opening for others propelled L.D. 50 to gold status as Mudvayne's cartoonish costumes and makeup were embraced by metal fans for their novelty and, oh yes, the September 11 terrorist attacks altered the aesthetic climate in which the band functions. At least, you'd have thought it did. Mudvayne still thinks nothing of putting out lyrics like, "I need a barrel of cyanide, a pile of strychnine until the whole damn world is dead start over again" (from the album's title song), as if it hadn't become painfully obvious that there actually are people in the world willing to act on such ridiculous sentiments. The amusement value of such posturing is reduced when reality comes so close to dark fantasy. To Mudvayne, however, it all still seems to be a joke. ~ William Ruhlmann

メジャー・デビューを待たずしてスリップノットやスレイヤーと共演して話題となったマッドヴェインの通算3作目。ゴリゴリのヘヴィー一辺倒ではなく、激しさの中にも柔軟性を持たせた奥行きのあるサウンドで随所に工夫が見られる。インテリジェンスなヘヴィー・ロックといったところか?　混交したシーンから頭ひとつ抜き出た存在の彼ら、ヴィジュアル面においても不気味で強烈なインパクトを放っている。
bounce (C)杉本康雄