Norma Jean - Redeemer

Norma Jean - Redeemer

O' God The Aftermath was a tornado of an album, it was fast, intense, hit with an unrelenting force and in the end you were scrambling to find what remained of your senses. Redeemer is a hurricane. It's more oppressive, it's a bit slower, it covers a larger area, but it's just as destructive if not more so. Really if there's such thing as a perfect album this may be it. Redeemer is a master piece hands down.

Taking their mathcore roots, it slows everything down. Long intros that switch directions keep your ears on their toes. 'A grand scene for a color film' starts things off in full force, it's like being hit by a stampede of angry elephants. It feels more refined than anything they've previously done and for that it's heavy and harder than anything else. 'Blueprints for future homes' takes things in another direction. While just as intense as the beginning, it's a more melodic side of Norma Jean. It's something they hinted at in their previous work but never really used. Here it shows up full force. Songs like 'Cemetery like a stage' and 'A small spark vs a large forest' really show how a song can be heavy and dirty while at the same time being melodic and catchy.

The last song on the album 'No passenger:No parasite' slows things down even more, it's long it's drawn out, it's amazing. It starts of with a haunting chorus line of "wake up" being repeated over a steady drum beat, while in the background you can hear what almost sounds like a heart monitor. As it progresses slowly elements are added. The drumming gets more intense, the guitar is heard, then the bass line, breaking into a full song. It's so simple, yet so complex with so many different layers. It's haunting and probably one of the best ending songs to any album.

Norma Jean has pulled off an amazing feat. Redeemer some how takes everything they have done in the past, refines it to the point where this album should come with a suit and tie, slows it down, and turns the intensity up. It leaves you needing a shower it's so dirty. It's about as close to perfection as a band could ever get. This is a must listen for anybody even remotely interested in music.

Norma Jean - O' God The Aftermath

Norma Jean - O' God The Aftermath

Norma Jean is back with their second full length album titled O' God The Aftermath. Fronted by newly added Cory Brandan Putman, they're ready to show other bands how Mathcore is done. Even more focused on the raw intensity of the genre Norma Jean throws everything at this album. It comes out even more stripped down compared to their first album and also even heavier.

The whole album is a never relenting hailstorm of intense fast paced riffs and amazing drumming. Never settling on conventional song structures this album is their most intriguing from a musical standpoint. Even songs that start out Seemingly unfocused and crazy for crazy's sake melt into something melodic and identifiable. 

Cory Brandan's vocals are put to good use on this album creating harmonies not previously seen from the band. Particularly on the songs Pretendeavor and Scientifiction. Disconnecktie is the most progressive song this band has put out, it slows down the pace and ends up heavier for it. It's unique and won't bore even the most jaded of Mathcore fans.

This is easily the most stripped down, rawest, and fastest album from the band. It hits you from the get go, grabs you and keeps pummeling you the whole way through. When the ride is over you're going to be lining up begging for more of the abuse. Norma Jean has proven they're here to stay.

Norma Jean - Bless the Martyr and Kiss the Child

Norma Jean - Bless the Martyr and Kiss the Child

Bless The Martyr And Kiss The Child is the debut album from Norma Jean. Following in the steps of bands like Converge and Dillenger Escape Plan, Norma Jean ventures in the realm of technical break downs, off beats, and throw-away chords. This is a Mathcore album through and through leaning more towards the core side. While it definitely holds its own it feels a bit one note. Any harmony and melody is drowned out by the screeching and overall comes off disjointed. The other issue is it comes off a bit unpolished. However it shows promise, this is a band starting out after all and while it shows, it also shows that there's great potential for something greater. 

'Face:Face' is one of the most standout songs on the album. It starts off hard and loud, but melts into probably the best representation of a melody on this album. It becomes fun to listen to and does stand out amongst the rest. The same can be said about 'Memphis will be laid to waste'. The sheer brutality of the song is why it stands out. It's a constant assault on your auditory sense that never relents. 

Norma Jean definitely have what it takes to make it, and rise above in the Mathcore genre. It may not be immediately apparent with this album but if you listen the qualities are there. They're a band to watch to see what they become. It could be something great.

Norma Jean - Meridional

Norma Jean - Meridional

Their last album Vs The Anti-Mother showed off a slower more melodic side of Norma Jean. 2010's Meridional shows off a much heavier side of Norma Jean. Starting with the song 'Leaderless and self-enlisted' it hits you in the face with low tuned guitars, a never ceasing drum beat while still embodying the throw-away chords and riffs that make Norma Jean so good. 'Anthem of angry brides' is another heavy song although it plays more to the math-core side of things. While this is the most oppressively hard hitting album they've released it also does contain some ballads reminiscent of the previous album. 'Falling from the sky, day seven' is probably the first slow ballad they've ever really done. It's slower, it's more melodic in tone, but still heavy at parts.

This is also the most lyrically impressive album they've ever released. Norma Jean have always been a Christian band and it comes out in force on this album. The expressions and metaphors created in the songs are beautiful. Even if you're not religious or despise Christianity, you still have to give them credit for the images and mood the lyrics create. Particularly the songs 'Deathbed Atheist', 'Bastardizer', and the previously mentioned 'Falling from the sky, day seven' don't try to hide their religious tone.

I'm curious as to where Norma Jean goes from here. They've been pushing to a more sludge-metal sound for the last two albums now. Most of their math-core roots have been swept aside although you can still hear the influence. It seems like their next album is going to break some faces. It may not be the direction old fans want but it's commendable for a band not to stay still. 

[Extra Note]

Meridional came out right around the time The Ocean released their album Anthropocentric. While Meridional praises Christianity and questions Atheism, Anthropocentric is it's counter part. It takes an impressive deep look at Christianity and questions it's beliefs to the point of criticizing it. It's a musical journey to listen to both one after the other, it's a nice balance. I suggest this method of listening no matter what your religious beliefs are.

Norma Jean - Vs The Anti-Mother

Norma Jean - Vs The Anti-Mother

Vs The Anti-Mother is the 4th full length album from Norma Jean coming 2 years after the untouchable Redeemer. It's a departure from their earlier work, a lot of different styles have been used making a very diverse album. The only track really reminiscent of their older mathcore style is the song 'Birth of the Anti Mother' which is one of the fastest and hardest songs they've done. The rest of the album ranges from sludge metal to more melodic ballads. Over all it's a lot slower paced then previous works, but at the same time it features some of their heaviest songs.

The album also saw the contributions of many other artists. Particularly the track 'Surrender your sons' co-written by Chino Moreno of the Deftons rises above, it's one of the best tracks on this album, and one of my favorite Norma Jean tracks, even though, and perhaps because of how different it is from anything they've ever done. It's a haunting guitar track, it's haunting vocals, it's heavy, it's dynamic. Chino and Cory's voice work perfectly together. The lyrics are some of the best Norma Jean has ever written. 

Vs The Anti-Mother is a polarizing album. It's so different from anything they've ever done, it's so diverse in style. Many fans will surely be put off by it's unwillingness to sound the same as previous albums. Since it's so different it does have some high points but also some low points. Taken as a whole it's a good album, it's always positive when a band branches out and is willing to take chances. It's commendable that they've diversified themselves so much and only good things can come of this for their next albums.

Norma Jean - Wrongdoers

 Norma Jean - Wrongdoers

Rockers Norma Jean are back with a new album to show exactly why to they are referred to as The Almighty Norma Jean. The band has said this is supposed to be a mix of all things Norma Jean combined with a new flavor, and they delivered. If you took every Norma Jean album put it in a pot and turned it up to 11 you'd end up with Wrongdoers. The album is that good and has something for everyone. It has the slower, heavy, songs of Anti-Mother, it has the faster songs of O' God The Aftermath, it has mathcore, hardcore, sludge, and metal all mixed into one, resulting in probably the most progressive and refined album the band has ever released. 

There is no filler on this album, even the track Afterhour Animals which is just a recorded female voice telling you that you are calm, creates atmosphere. Every chord, lyric, riff, beat, has been thoughtfully added to each track. There's plenty of parts that will stick with you similar to lines like 'Tonight the south is on fire'. It makes an amazing album to listen to, but also will make an memorizing live show as well.

While there are really no throw away tracks on here, there are definitely some tracks that stand out on this album as always. Particularly the songs 'If you got it at five then you got it at fifty' and 'The lash whistled like a singing wind' will bring back memories of O' God The Aftermath and Bless The Martyr, 'Potter has no hands' is probably one of their fastest tracks and most mathcore. The title track 'Wrongdoers' is probably my favorite off the album, it'd fit right at home on Redeemer, it's hard but a ballad at the same time. I dare you to try and not get the line 'We make love to the same mistakes' stuck in your head.

What also stands out on this album is the drumming and vocals. Cory Brandan Putman's control over his own voice is almost inhuman, especially in the hardcore genre. Most vocalists can growl, scream, or be melodic. It's the reason why dual vocalists rule the land. Cory started to show off his more melodic side with Vs The Anti-Mother and on this album it's perfected. The little nuances as he switches back and forth can't be rivaled. This album also introduces a new drummer, Clayton Holyoak. To me his drumming is comparable to Daniel Davison who is one of the best drummers of all time. He's better suited to the band and it shows on this album, no beat sounds the same nor is boring.

The only downside to the album is the length, it's not too short, but it's going to leave you wanting to hear more of this new and improved Norma Jean. 2013 has been one of the best years for music so far and Norma Jean saw no reason to break that trend. This is easily one of their best albums, one of their most accessible (not a bad thing) albums, and one of their most progressive and diverse albums. This is a new era of Norma Jean, this is the aftermath.