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Showing reviews 6-10 of 164
 Hope isn't gone, it just took a severe beating. August 28, 2008
B. Forrester (Maryland)
10 out of 13 found this review helpful
I remember hearing the concept of Slipknot back in '99, wanting to check them out. All I needed to hear was a small snippet of 742617000027 to convince me to buy their debut and I've been hooked ever since. Ever since they hit the scene I've heard nothing but complaints bashing them. It added to my respect. Here were guys playing nu-metal, the most loathed sub-genre in the history of music, and even though I have heard many a hard fast metal band, I have never heard anyone sound as pissed off as Slipknot. Not to mention I've never heard anyone who sounds as unique as Slipknot. Their last 3 albums and their live album put them on the list of my favorites.
So when the single "All Hope is Gone" was dropped a few months ago, I listened and I began counting down the days to this album, practically salivating for its release. I bought my copy and expected to be impressed. I quite frankly have never been more disappointed and frustrated with an album in my life.
The album starts off with .execute which is a perfect weird intro to get you psyched up for Gematria. The song is nothing short of amazing, it's like elements of thrash, nu-metal, metalcore and an angry hornet's nest thrown in a blender. It's one of the hands-down best songs they have put out. Unfortunately the majority of the remainder of the album doesn't live up to that. Heck, it doesn't even live up to the standard of being called good.
Tracks like "Sulfur," "Wherein Lies Continue," "Psychosocial" and others all start off like strong metal tracks, but when the melodic choruses kick in the music all of a sudden changes to a simple bland rock sound. It completely castrates any brutality and hardness that the songs have and it so jolting it ruins the songs. It's not like these guys have never put melodies and clean vocals in their stuff before ("Left Behind" and "Duality" come to mind) but this just sounds horrible. They manage pull it off on "The Butcher's Hook," so it just makes those other tracks even worse.
I'm not one of those guys complaining about how this isn't Iowa or the album isn't 100% non-stop brutal, I liked the stuff they added to their sounds in Vol. 3. Heck, "Danger - Keep Away" is one of my favorite tracks by them. But the stuff they added on Vol. 3 had one thing going for it...it was unique. Tracks like "Snuff," "Vendetta," and "Dead Memories" sound like stuff we've heard five thousand times over on rock radio (key word `rock,' not metal). It's cookie cutter. It's infuriating to hear it on this album. It may be cliche to say it now but the tracks really DO sound like Stone Sour, which would be great if I paid for a Stone Sour CD.
That's not to say the entire album is crap. "This Cold Black," "All Hope is Gone," and the aforementioned "Gematria" are killer. They are a change from the norm, infusing their old style with thrash and other metal elements. "Gehenna" is the only time they sound unique with their melodic attempts. The song sounds like a booze and acid induced depression anthem, the type of song that Marilyn Manson wishes he made.
Fanboy maggots are complaining that people who dislike this album simply can't handle the fact that Slipknot's sound has "evolved" and "matured." Why is it the preconceived notion that to mature your sound you have to sound like every other band on the planet? And what's the point of evolving if you're not going from a unique sound to a commercialistic mess? It's not like metal can't be complex, mature, brutal and unique, if you don't believe me you should listen to bands like Meshuggah and Gojira. You say "mature" and "evolved", I say "bland" and "uninspired." Is it such an unrealistic concept to expect a band comprised of 9 members in masks and jumpsuits to sound different?
Basically about 4 tracks on this album actually sound like the band is trying to please their old fans and actually gain new ones with this album, by adding some new to the old. The majority of the album sounds as if this band is limping along on its last leg, bored out of their skulls, and trying to please the unadventurous masses.
If these guys make a Vol. 5 (if they don't break up before then) I hope its impressive, or all hope is indeed gone for this band
 Coming full circle August 29, 2008
N. Durham (Philadelphia, PA)
9 out of 14 found this review helpful
It didn't take all that long for Slipknot to seperate themselves from the nu-metal pack that their major label debut hit alongside in 1999. Fast forward almost ten years later, and Slipknot is still around, consistently releasing heavy albums that marginally get better with each new release. The eagerly anticipated "All Hope is Gone" is the best to come from the band yet, and despite what some of the negative reviews here state to the contrary, "All Hope is Gone" is pure ear candy for metal heads. Lead single "Psychosocial" is a prime example of this, as are "Gematria (The Killing Name)", "Sulfur", "Gehenna", the title track, and "Child of Burning Time". The album as a whole finds Slipknot's musical prowess ranging from brutal to melodic and back again, with singer Corey Taylor taking more than one cue from being in Stone Sour in terms of his vocals. While "All Hope is Gone" may borderline on being a little too long, it still stands as being the best thing from Slipknot to see the light of day yet, and further cements the fact that Slipknot is thankfully here to stay.
All Hope IS Gone August 27, 2008
Forcefed (Detroit)
7 out of 17 found this review helpful
I=ve been a fan of Slipknot since OO.At that time it was unlike anything I had heard.If someone asked me what metal is I would give them IOWA.I really looked forward to this release.If you've heard Psychosocial, you've heard the best song here.I can't defend them on this one.As a fan,I feel alienated.This is to Slipknot what Load was to Metallica,the beginning of the end.Wait until September 16th and buy All That Remains"Overcome".
What Do You Want? What Do You Need? September 3, 2008
Mr. Censored (Maine)
7 out of 11 found this review helpful
It's not easy being Slipknot. With nine people to bounce ideas between and an overly-fickle fanbase, it's getting harder and harder for them to release an album that truly delivers. Perhaps that's why it took them four long years to release another album, and perhaps that's why it doesn't live up to all that it's expected to be.
When you make an album as strong and expansive as 2004's "Vol. 3: the Subliminal Verses" it's got to be impossible to follow it up. So, with their newest album, Slipknot attempt to combine the edginess of "Vol. 3" with the mean-streak of 2001's "Iowa" and for the most part, it works. "All Hope Is Gone" is definitely Slipknot. It's well made and well played, but there is definitely something missing.
With every album Slipknot releases comes change. We saw it from 1999's somewhat dated but fun self-titled affair (the first featuring frontman Corey Taylor, thus, the first in the string of "true" Slipknot albums) to the brutality of 2001's "Iowa." To counter that, in 2004, the band released their most melodic and experimental album to date in "Vol. 3." Unfortunately, four years later, change isn't in the cards, and "All Hope Is Gone" treads over territory all too familiar.
Make no mistake, this is still a strong album, even if a certain aspect is missing. Songs like "Vendetta," "Gematria (The Killing Name)" and the title track are 100% classic, pure, unbridled Slipknot. If you can't appreciate these songs, you probably didn't like the band to begin with. "Sulfur," "Dead Memories" and the first single, "Psychosocial," capitalize well on Taylor's knack for melody and catchy hooks. Sandwiched in between are some strong and compelling material ("Snuff") and, unfortunately, some of the most dumbed down and predictable music the band has recorded to date ("The Butcher's Hook"). To say they combined the best of "Vol. 3" and "Iowa" on this album is definitely the best way to describe it, as each songs could have a place on either album.
"All Hope Is Gone" -- in a nutshell -- is a good album, hampered by the lack of freshness. Perhaps all the side projects and stand-in gigs have taken their toll on the creative well within the band, and if that's the case, four years is too long to wait for album number five. Slipknot are still a great band, iconic even. And on the same side of the coin, "All Hope Is Gone" is a strong release. But they need something more. Something that sets them even apart even more from the ever expanding pack of new metal bands. And that something, unfortunately, isn't here.
 Metal Grown Up August 29, 2008
R. Johnson
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
I'm a fairly new Slipknot fan. I started with their live album and then worked my way backwards. Then I listened to All Hope is Gone and now I'm sold. I've noticed that with each album, Slipknot seemed to grow musically and lyrically. It's only so many times you can hear double bass drumming, heavily distorted guitars, and screaming lines before it gets worn out. I think All Hope is Gone has shown Slipknot's maturation into a metal band that can be lyrical, melodic and heavy at the same time. At first listen, I loved the album, but I thought to myself that the hardcore maggots were gonna hate it. If they do, then they really aren't true music fans. If you love a group, you can respect when they try to do something new and different. You may not always agree with the musical direction, but you can at least be appreciative of a band's willingness to try something different.
Overall, a great album!
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