A great idea and good songs to boot
As far as I am aware there hasn't been an album recorded like this on such a massive scale. My immediate thoughts went to Dave Grohl's 'Probot' project but this album is more than that. Fifty-five artists from forty-two bands, four team captains, eighteen very metal tracks and one groundbreaking album. It's certainly a mouth-watering prospect, but I always have reservations about band collaborations. Most of the time they don't work, partly due to the fact that the song or songs in question are written for a soundtrack and is never the artist's strongest material. This project is a little different to the normal collaborations, guest appearances or super groups, not only due to its magnitude but also its high quality and varied content.
The album primarily revolves around four key players, Rob Flynn (Machine Head), Joey Jordison (Slipknot), Dino Cazares (Ex Fear Factory) and Matthew Heafy (Trivium). These heavy metal heroes are the principle songwriters for the All-Star Sessions, with the lyrics being written by whichever artist is singing that particular track. As well as writing the songs, they also play their respective instruments on the album, recruiting help from other musicians associated with the Roadrunner label. To name them all would be unnecessary, but suffice to say with such warblers as Howard Jones (Killswitch Engage), Corey Taylor (Slipknot) and Keith Caputo (Life of Agony) lending their talents, this album has some of the cream of the current metal scene.
The first two tracks, 'The Dagger' and 'The Enemy' are a both powerful tunes showcasing the song-writing skills of Rob Flynn and Dino Cazares respectively. 'Annihilation by the hands of God' is a brilliant five minutes of heavy music if you can withstand the unique guttural growl of Deicide's Glen Benton. The album then jumps from relentless thrashing to the old school trappings of 'In the fire' led by the immortal King Diamond. It is then you realise that all the tracks you've heard so far are written to fit with that particular singer's style. This trait is carried through the rest of the album with each singer not stretching too far from the sub genre from whence they came. I am still undecided as to whether this is a good idea or a bad idea, on one hand it would be interesting to hear singers expanding their talents on different styles of metal, but the flipside could be an abomination as a singer could sound totally inappropriate and out of his/her depth. On reflection I think Roadrunner United made the correct choice because it's only my personal curiosity that wishes to hear Dani Filth singing the punky leanings of 'I don't wanna be (a Superhero)'.
Rob Flynn's songs all have that Machine Head signature sound which is no bad thing. All of his contributions are excellent especially the sombre 'The Rich Man' ably sang by Slipknot's Corey Taylor. The big surprise of the album for this reviewer was the tracks penned by Trivium's Matthew K. Heafy. I'm not a Trivium fan but it was Heafy's songs that made my ears prick up causing me to rifle through the very thick CD booklet to find out who had written and performed the tune in question. It was also nice to hear Roadrunner's recent coup in the shape of Opeth's Mikael Akerfeldt adding his golden tonsils to the two-minute mellow moment 'Roads'. With eighteen songs on offer clocking in at seventy-seven minutes, it does represent value for money but it is heavy going at times. Songs such as 'Baptized in the Redemption' and 'No Mass Control' suggest the album wouldn't have suffered if they were omitted from the final press because they don't add anything to the proceedings except shouting and heavy riffing.
This is perhaps the best collaboration album I've ever listened to. The songs are solid and, with the mixing skills of Colin Richardson and Andy Sneap, they seem to gel together without any of the ideas sounding out of place. If you've been a follower of mainstream metal over the past ten years then I advise to get a hold of this album as it's representative of all that it's relevant in metal today. There's not much room for progressive, power, doom, battle metal etc... but if you're a child of nu-metal, have a love of contemporary thrash or an inkling towards some brutal hardcore then look no further.
The constantly changing singers and the difference of styles from the nu-metal flavour of 'The End' to the black metal 'Annihilation by the hands of God' may grate with some listeners who perhaps prefer a little more continuity to their music. Unfortunately if you're not a fan of a certain singer's style then the finger does tend to aim for the 'skip track' button no matter how good the song is. Most bands have a cohesive quality and a chemistry that allows them to write and play together, Roadrunner United have over come this by utilising the skills of musicians who have a genuine love for music. Because of this enthusiasm the All-Stars have churned out a good quality and highly enjoyable album. At a reasonable price plus a bonus DVD about the making of the record, Roadrunner can be proud of this unique achievement and one hopes it's not another twenty-five years before they decide to do it again. My only question to Roadrunner is 'Where was John Drenning and the rest of the members of Crimson Glory, I loved them'?