There is kind of a fence between nu-metal and metal with metal fans mostly hating the nu version. And this White Pony LP seems to be one that jumps over said proverbial fence, as the band has been put in both categories and beyond with music nerds, snobs and critics also accepting the band into their ranks of favourite bands. I’ve heard White Pony called the OK Computer of metal. Let’s take a listen and see whether it’s deserving of that title.
1. Back To School
So apparently the label forced them to make this track so they had at least one for the radio or something. And the band just went along with the demands and put it out in a day. Looking at it through that lens it seems a bit of a contrived attempt to appeal to angsty teens.
Now we’re on the next page
It’s time to close the book up!
In a way the serious singing with lines like that is a bit jarring. It’s a decent song with a great hook, also like the post chorus. Can’t help but think of the Nirvana song thematically speaking too though, yr in highschool agaiiiin. And I like that song a lot more.
2. Feiticeira
Guitars create this wall of sound here and tonally this isn’t nu-metal at all. No rapping, not even really any screaming.
3. Digital Bath
Has this depressing sombre atmosphere. Nu-metal was mostly tense and aggressive but these emotions seem searching deeper, beyond the anger. Some haunting atmospherics and yeah, just a tastefulness to this stuff. Can definitley understand why Radiohead fans would also be fans of this, they have that sort of soaring melancholia thing down to a tee. And hearing the calm vocal inflections over this heavy sound is goosebump inducing. Also, the guitars create textures rather than mere boneheaded riffs. Grandiose.
4. Elite
Ah this is more of a riff driven track, more aggressive. Some tasteful use of warbly vocoder on the vocals. Lyrics detailing depression and things. Breaks up the album a bit after two murky gloomy numbers but I otherwise find it a bit over repetitive for the length of the song. It might have worked better as a 2 minute short track.
The production is effective for the atmospheric tracks but on a rocker like this, there’s no bounce, the guitars have a great crunching sound but it’d be better if it sounded less clean and rawer. dirtier!
5. RX Queen
This track seems distorted in a really cool way. And the drums have this tribal feel, almost a jungle sound with the snare. Another searing hook on this track. This would be perfect for a slow motion scene in a TV show with a guy running in the rain or something. Maybe like a season ender where he’s running after the girl when she’s leaving for law school but it’s too late or something. The breakdown has these weird pitched noises, kind of alien sounding. Another melodic track.
6. Street Carp
Another more conventional riff. I’m digging singers voice and the less idiotic lyrics give this more artistic authenticity. Like if this was Slipknot the address referred to would HAVE to be 666 something. Quite overbearing doom with the guitar sound and voice being similar on most of the tracks.
7.Teenager
Appreciate an instrumentation change up because the album was becoming a bit of a relentless dirge. This one is straight up pleasant with a chilled riff surrounded by electronic atmospherics and glitchy effects. What really comes to mind here is the reason why nu-metal basically failed. Bands were unwilling to develop, in fact a lot of them regressed or went into even more commercial sounds as they went on. The reason why Deftones are almost the only remaining band with artistic credibility is because they were willing to push themselves as artists to re-invent themselves in some way.
8. Knife Party
Promising riff. I felt like previously the album went like atmospheric song/rocker/something else/rocker. But this one has a bit of everything. I have a penchant for call and response vocals so that GO GET YOUR KNIFE really appeals to me.
I could float here forever.
The introduction of a wailing woman came as a surprise but it works, the womans wails get more and more haunted as it goes on.
Seems to be the track that combines all their best elements together atmospherics, avant tendencies, rock riffs and hooks all meshing and I gotta say this one gives me the chills.
9. Korea
This title? And they titled that other album in Japanese? Guess there were a few Asians in the band. There’s so little screaming on this thing it’s always great to have an old fashioned throat destroying chorus, and during the second part of the song the vocal destruction is killer. Songwise this is one of the most conventional. I find these conventional rockers a bit troubling in the context of this LP. The production of it with all these layers and murkyness make them hard to enjoy as punky screamy headbangers, yet they’re clearly less interesting musically than the rest of the album.
10. Passenger
Weird sounds on this. Aliens coming! There’s two singers on this and one of them sounds like the Tool guy. IS Maynard James Keenan
This track almost reminds me of Fugazi or something, the way it builds crumbles back down again. For me this is a bit too overbearing and wrought though.
11. Changes (in the house of Flies)
Sounding good so far. Has these really eerie backing sounds, more soaring vocals.
I watched you change to a fly
David Cronenberg reference? Probably not. There’s so much power to these soaring vocals over the heavy sound, and I’m someone who in general loves aggressive screaming in nu-metal but this is effective in a a different way.
12. Pink Maggit.
Last track is the longest, baby I know! This is mega slowed down sad depressing music. Sad bastard music right here. No, just kidding, but you would NOT put this on a Monday morning mix. It’s cool though, can imagine a good video for this like a slightly darker black and white version of the Christina Aguilera Beautiful video with a load of messed up young people looking in the mirror. Actually I shouldn’t make light of it so, it has this genuinely heartfelt sound and chilling atmosphere. Now a reprise of the track from the beginning of the album. Such a simple trick, I love when bands do this. And then it all slows down.
Overall, this was a really solid LP with atmospheric guitars, some brilliant hooks and experimental tendencies. My favorite tracks were Knife Party, Digital Bath and RX Queen, where these disparate elements came together to create this monolithic emotive avant metal sound. I would have liked more examples of the sonic diversity highlighted on a track like teenager. Also, there are a few tracks that are sub-par compared to the albums best moments, mostly the rockers which are necessary for the albums flow but the production didn’t work on them for me. That’s just my opinion. However, it’s a great LP I really respect their evolution of traditional nu-metal.
As much as I love parts of this LP and respect it as an artistic statement, I don’t quite see it as the masterpiece others do, becuase I think there are a few weaker tracks on this LP and songs which don’t live up to its finest moments.
Give this one 4/5
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