Pass Out of Existence

I've decided I'm not going to shit all over this album because, with respect to Chimaira, the faults of Pass Out of Existence were quickly rectified for the following albums, plus no one else has ever sounded quite like this. Maybe the answer to that statement is "No one wants to", but so be it - this album is unique. I side with the band in saying that it's certainly not nu metal: it's perhaps a weird kind of groove metalcore cum death metal via Demanufacture with too many electronic noises. Mark Hunter's vocals are too brutal for nu metal, the drums are too busy, and there's a guitar solo (not long, not good) on the very first song.

On the other hand, the guitars are nullified for a large part of the album because they are downtuned (I'm going to say C tuning, though I'm not completely sure) and sound quite deep and farty, like the noise a new chainsaw makes when you rev it up. Probably the best riff is one on 'Rizzo', provided by Stephen Carpenter of Deftones - I'm assuming, since he's a guest on the song - which sounds better the more you listen to it for some reason. Another riff like that which I remember clearly is the main riff on Satyricon's 'K.I.N.G.' There must be a name for riffs like that, probably something German like schadenfreude. On 'Rizzo', that riff is backed by electronic noises that compliment it for a change, rather than just competing with it, which is what happens more often on this album, Mark Spicuzza being given licence to squelch and blurt out in an attempt to distract from the mediocre riffing.

Therefore, while the string players don't get a great deal of joy on Pass Out of Existence (I can't say much for the bass, because it's not a very strong presence), our boy Andols Herrick is actually decent on drums. He isn't exactly extreme, but he certainly meets the vocals on their own level, while mixing in more diverse beats than your average metalcore drummer, despite a few rather obvious breakdowns. I would compare Herrick and Hunter to the same pairing from Devildriver, who are also skilled and brutal non-extreme modern metal workhorses. Hunter's harsh vocals are very clearly enunciated and have surprising diversity, while his cleans sound treated, but aren't saccharine by any means.

Songwise, there's a real mixed bag here. The repetitive, neanderthal brainlessness of tracks like 'Dead Inside' and 'Severed' doesn't come off well, the mid-section of the latter in particular being a horrific car crash of breakdown leading onto breakdown, while the word "severed" is screamed ad nauseum. Truly an experiment that only needs trying once. A few other songs are fairly disposable, which comes as no surprise on a 14 track album, but there are some decent creepy moments that the slower grooves and electronics bring out nicely. The title track and 'Painting the White to Grey' are probably the most satisfying songs, neither of which get bogged down in specifics and triumph with memorable choruses, plus it's always fun to have a song like 'SP Lit', in which you can scream along with the line "You destroy me every time you little cunt". One for the ladies I guess. 'Jade' is worth a mention, if only for the fact that it's probably the only 10 minute-plus metalcore song I can think of. It isn't that great, but it's certainly interesting and the closing trip-hop section is surprisingly atmospheric. Maybe it's a little weird to say about an album whose prime subjects seem to be misanthropy and pain, but Pass Out of Existence is a fun, if decidedly unaccomplished, listen.

In the early Nineties, when Mark Hunter and Rob Arnold were still drooling over Slayer or Metallica or whatever they listened to at the time, Evan Seinfeld (the singer from Biohazard) told a thing that the by-then impressed teenagers that would become collectively known as Chimaira certainly listened to: “It’s important to learn how to crawl before you learn how to walk. […] At some point you may even be able to fly”. Say whatever you want about the Seinfeld or Biohazard, but in fact the video for “Punishment” was the most played video in Headbangers Ball, and then we’ve got Chimaira’s evolution. The latter was just to explain why this album isn’t as heavy as later releases.

Anyway, some people called this nü-metal, as expected because a) this came out in 2001 b) this is groovy. Of course it isn’t, but I’m going to be fairly upfront – it’s on the imminence of such. The general style is groove thrash, yes, but it lacks riffs and the overall sound is drowned in electronics. The first 20 seconds or so of the opening track “Let Go” exemplify that well. On one side, the electronics contribute to a dark, almost futuristic ambiance, but it also works the other way round – at some points it’s just plain annoying, and these guys managed to make a filler track out of it (“Abeo” – the best way to describe it is comparing it to the first two minutes of Slipknot’s eponymous song, plus lame crying and less riffing). Anyway, they’d learn how to use electronics better. But what truly lets this album down are the vocals. Mark Hunter isn’t as bad a vocalist as most people like to put it. Nonetheless, his screaming is slightly lame in most songs – “Sphere” is a great example of this, and not even the black metal ambiance can save this song. To save the day, sometimes we’ve got some decent screaming, an in addition Hunter gifts us with his unclean vocals (for example, “Dead Inside” at 2:39) and clean singing (best performed in the end of the title track, “Jade”, and in “Forced Life”, the track that made me think that Chimaira were an Edsel Dope side project).

Nevertheless, where this album really scores and gifts its listener, it’s both in drumming and (although, as I said, it’s nothing otherworldly) guitars. Right at the first track, the guys are already trying to crush one’s skull (1:02). The greatest feat of this album in terms of drumming is probably “Severed” (even if that particular song is extremely repetitive, with a rather odd coalition of breakdowns after breakdowns) and “Lumps” – the opening riff is nothing short of nü, but then the song quickly becomes the album’s best headbanging moment. Of course this wouldn’t be groove thrash without complex, technical grooves, and Chimaira presents us with a type of grooves never seen before, as far as I know – painful grooves. Forget the Pantera-like über-technical type of grooves; these grooves (especially in the masterpiece “Jade”) seem to be reflections of pain and suffering. Sadly, there are also parts in which even the prevalent instruments conspire to let the album down, such as the KoЯn-esque “Taste My…” (taste my what, by the way?).

As my rating tells, even if Mark Hunter and Andols Herrick are far away from what they would become (more the former than the latter, because the drumming is good) this is still a good album. It has some great songs, plus it’s quite dark and visceral, and it has sometimes an industrial flavour. Not to mention it has historical importance within the New Wave of American Heavy Metal. However, if you’re using this album to measure Chimaira’s level, beware that they were just learning how to crawl. That part is fundamental. If you want to see them walking or flying, get their two following records.

Chimaira - Pass Out Of Existence
An Unexpected Surprise

It’s understandable why elitists may hate this album. The riffs reek of the heavy end of mallcore, the screams can be grating at times, and by the middle of the album, unless you’ve been paying close attention you may feel as though you’ve been listening to one continuous song. However, for those who are okay with something a little more mainstream and at the same time very heavy, you’ll be in for an unexpected surprise.

Chimaira’s first full length disk may be prompted as mallcore, but this is some hard hitting mallcore. I can get into mallcore and all, but this is a very heavy disk. The riffs, while they get a little monotonous and generic at times, feel thick and well-produced, a mix I can only suggest of mallcore, groove metal, and metalcore, as asininely awful as that sounds. Mark Hunter’s vocals can be grating at first, but through repeated listens you’ll find that he has a sharp attack that fits the aggressive style quite well. There are very few clean singing parts, and there are some spoken or whispered parts. While many people may think that’s pretty lame, I think it gives a diversity that the disk really benefits from. The bass, for the most part, follows the guitar, and I can’t think of any spots that it really impresses me. However, this disk’s selling point is most certainly in the drums. Andy Herrick’s percussion at times is akin to something straight out of brutal death metal - it’s fast, it’s accurate, and it has a good sound to it. This really aids those times when the generic riffs need a little boost, and the drums shine through. There are also some electronics that are thrown in at times. In some riffs, they sound pretty neat, and some others they feel thrown in just so the electronics guy has something to do.

This may have sounded a bit contradictory - on one hand, the riffs are hard hitting and well-produced but on the other hand they can become generic sounding as there isn’t much diversity. The first song ‘Let Go’ probably won’t be the selling point of the disk. Here you see a solid, hard hitting intro riff turn into a chorus that is based on just a few power chords. Not too interesting. However, by the main riff of the next track ‘Dead Inside’, that down-tuned groove riff is one example of riffs that work on this disk and sound really great. Also, note how the drums are fast and aggressive when they need to be, but also held back a little for groove instead of extremity at good times.

If you wanted a quick way to find out if you’ll like this disk or not, there are two songs I suggest you listen to. The first of which is track three, ‘Severed’. While on one hand, it’s extremely heavy, vicious, and aggressive, it may be the most monotonous song on the disk. The chanted chorus repeated so many times through the song, with that basic one note palm-muted riff will test your tolerance for this disk. Also, ‘Taste My…’ will test your tolerance for more of the clean and spoken vocals. I personally find that the clean vocals are a bit overused because they’re not very well done in that song. If you’re looking for something unique, and off the beaten path that this disk opts to follow most of the time, check out ‘Rizzo’. The main riff is extremely catchy, heavy, and in an interesting time signature.

Overall, I like this disk a lot. As bad as it might sound, it’s my favorite from Chimaira - something about every subsequent disks feels more forced and more generic.

Top Three Tracks: ‘Rizzo’ ‘Forced Life’ ‘Dead Inside’

A lot of negativity seems to be directed at this album, it has to be said. Most people see a laughable paradigm of poser metal. I however, see something very different.

Firstly, despite it being blatantly Metalcore and bordering on wannabe Thrash, it's actually quite good. Some of the songs are quite catchy, and certainly the first few times, feel genuinely hardcore. The pretence, however, is quickly shed. Surprisingly, what is left behind is not as bad as the falsidical facade would have lead you to believe. To put it another way, it's like using an air freshener to remove an odour which wasn't too bad in the first place and making a graveolent mess of it. A surprisingly tasteful mess.

Which is probably the best way to describe Chimaira. They should be crap, but they're not. As suggested in the (rather pathetic) analogy made earlier, Chimaira are a anagogic cocktail of something they are, and something they are not. The fact they somehow get away with it makes them rather unique.

Their sound is predominantly identified by the high-pitched grunts, almost reminiscent of punk. They do, however, sound quite shrill in a fierce way, sounding quite monster-esque, almost as if to paint a vocal portrait of the Chimera. It's quite a unique (I'm using this word a lot now) and refreshing sound. It genuinely has to be heard to be appreciated - certainly by anyone who can look beyond the typical metallic spectrum.

Particular favourites on the album are "Dead Inside", "Jade", "Options", "Forced Life", and Rizzo". Each of them has something quite different to offer, whether it be in terms of melody, vocals, or style. "Jade" in particularly powerful, and has some well thought-out lyrics and riffs.

The main reason for me recommending this album would be its sheer replayability. You could quite easily listen to the entire thing from beginning to end over-and-over again without getting sick of it. The lyrical appreciation to be had is also rather profound. Unlike most metalcore/Nu-metal, the content is to be interpreted rather than listened to blindly, with a sullen tear in your eye. It takes a serious, yet not over-emotional tone on the issues it conveys - neither depressing, nor acrid. It's a rare, yet well aligned balance.

By no means will this appeal to everyone, but it's definitely worth a listen for anyone who's being introduced to the metal genre shallow-end first. If you're fiercely loyal to death metal, then you might want to steer clear, but don't completely rule it out. I'm a strictly Melodeath kind of guy, but I do like to give this one a whirl every now and again.

Well, seeing that no one has reviewed this album yet, I thought why not I then? I can see why no one hasn't reviewed this album yet:

1 - it's mallcore.
2 - who would want to buy an album from this group anyway?!

Sadly for me, I ended up buying the album a long while back because I have heard some good stuff about them from other people. I wasn't that open to the genre of metal back in my days but little by little, I began discovering some true talent, and apparently for me, I was stuck in the metalcore part of metal music. People have told me that they're a extraordinary metalcore group and that they "kick ass." With all these people telling me this, I thought that it wouldn't hurt to check out the album being in the metal store I go to, the album is catagorized under the metal section. So I bought it brand spankin new, not even used or anything, expecting some real "extraordinary metalcore." Take a wild guess to how the album is? ...Give up? Well what the hell, haven't you seen my rating for the damn album?! With this in mind, I'll try making this short and sweet being most metalheads don't even bother with Chimaira.

Where to begin? For one, it's very nu-metal and it sometimes sounds a lot like techno. It's weak, with very pitiful vocals and horendous sounding guitars (at times.) Mark Hunter sounds like he's puking shit out of his mouth with every mouth opening on the album; he sounds like a 13 year old boy who has the flu trying to speak. He also has some "clean vocals" which sound more like he's rapping in many of the songs (look to tracks like "SP lit", "Pass Out Of Existance," and "Taste My...") Singing is definitally not his thing, that's for sure. Rapping? Maybe, he can be the next Slim Shady for all we care (or whatever the fuck he considers himself to be.)

The music... what can be said about it?! I kind of explained how the sound is: weak! I heard the opening for the first track "Let Go" and it sounded sorta like slow death metalish riffs, but when I heard the rest of the song, it sounded like Slipknot! Oh no! What happened to that cool opening?! I was mentioning "death metalish riffs" before and yes, the album does have it's heavy moments. Some songs really have some mediocre, but there's lots of palm-muting going on in the guitar work which gives it a heavy tone, like in such songs as "Severed" and "Lumps." Those are probably the only two songs I like from this album because they have some deep low toned riffs as openers and continuing throughout the song. "Lumps" have this sorta cool opener with the heavy riffs overlapping some sound effects, making it pretty catchy to hear throughout the music. Likewise, Mark Hunter's vocals kinda kill the two songs, but it's all good overall I must say

Yes, let me get to the "techno" part of the album. They have a "sound FX" man whom does nothing except push buttons throughout the album! Ha, what talent, I wish I can do that. That's even harder than playing the guitar! ::Scarcasm:: Well all throughout the album, yes there are alot of sound effects which devour the tracks. It doesn't affect the music so much, but sometimes I felt like I was listening to some Korn hooked on LSD with all the psychedelic sounds! I saw these guys one live with Shadows Fall (I went for Shadows Fall, not Chimaira) and I can recall that the sound RX guy didn nothing throughout the performance except headbanging like a muthafucker! He's one hell of a headbanger, I'll give him that, but even with the amazing talent of pushing buttons, I didn't see him do that live! Headbanging is great, but that doesn't help the music.

Bass-wise and drums? The bass, what can be said about it? It's louder than the guitars, and that's not always a great thing. Usually in metal, shouldn't the guitars be louder?! I think so, and the drums I must say are superb for a group who is nu-metalish. They're fast, loud and man could that drummer double-bass like a speeding demon! This drummers skill can be heard on such tracks like "Severed."

So, if you've reached this far in the review, then congrats! I wouldn't expect people to read this, but good for you for reading! Let's look over the album now... what have we learned about this album? It's nu-metal, yes it is, but in my mind, this album by Chimaira surely beats the hell out of Slipknot and Korn any day! For a nu-metal act, they are "extraordinary" as people quoted them to be (minus the "metalcore" part.) They're a much heavier nu-metal group, with actual heavy-as-hell riffs, and "oh my gosh, they actually have" double bassing drums! Try seeing that in any nu-metal act (other than Slipknot.) So you want to hear nu-metal gone wrong? Listen to this album by Chimaira and take a view into how nu-metal sounds with small doses of death metal. Does that make this album all the worth it to buy? Hells no.

Nice try guys on the attempt of metal, but have you boys checked out the second meaning of your name in the dictionary?

Ear Catchers: Severed, Lumps.