This will probably only seem odd to me, but although some of my first tastes, and loves, of metal were in the progressive field, I struggled to come to terms with the genre, eventually neglecting it in favour of other ventures. I suppose it’s a good thing that I chose to steer clear of progressive because, as I’ve slowly come back to it, I’ve learned to enjoy it more. This genre, in some respects, has become very nostalgic to me, evoking memories of my lost youth and reminding me why it is I got into metal in the first place. Whilst, of course, most people start with the obvious bands - like some generic nu-metal act, or one of the classics from heavy metal (a genre which still mostly eludes me to this day), I started in a very varied way. From the likes of Deftones, to British icons Bolt Thrower. My journey through the metal industry was, for lack of a better word, random. I was actually open minded at first, which scares me slightly. As I became entrenched and engaged in a long battle with metal, I started to lose a lot of what I had at the beginning, which was a passion for some of the obvious choices. Bands like this one, The Devin Townsend Band, were amongst the first I came across and although they didn’t influence my choices later down the line, the impression has been long lasting. In a sense, the title for this debut, ‘Accelerated Evolution’ is ironic.
How? Well, my roots in metal are firmly tied to any one genre, or band. I went, as I said, from Deftones, to Bolt Thrower, to The Devin Townsend Band and then on to Darkthrone. Already I’ve spread my undeveloped wings across several genres, tapping into many different and varied streams of metal, though the lasting impression was left by the tributary called black metal. I accelerated through the genres like a whirling dervish, evolving at the speed of light and experiencing bands as I changed through the gears and their respective genres. I’m surprised my pre-conceived notions of progressive metal being so pretentious lasted so long since I had some experience with the genre from the very beginning. Seeing as my opinion of this record, and this band in general, is almost immaculate, I find it strange that I developed a disdain for the genre that gave me all the memories that it has. For me, listening to ‘Accelerated Evolution’ is like taking a trip through regression and the past. I have a lot of memories attached to this record as it reminds me of certain people from my past and certain events that shapes my life so, I suppose, I’m slightly biased in my review for this piece as its very sentimental to me. Then again, I don’t suppose it would be if it wasn’t as good as I will begin to preach that it is.
I listened to this record less and less as time went by, but recently I re-discovered this piece in my collection and decided to give it a spin, since then I‘ve become addicted to it and its engrossing emotional story. I remember vividly the day I bought this CD in store in the city of London. I was with friends and none of us had heard this band, or of Devin Townsend before, and as an impressionable young man, I decided the artwork was intriguing enough to warrant buying it - so I did. When I got home, I immediately listened ‘Accelerated Evolution’ with a degree of anticipation and excitement. My appreciation for this record has actually grown since I’m now an adult and have a better understanding of music and the emotion that is behind the music. I imagine, with a certain conviction, that anyone listening to this for the first time after reading through the reviews will enjoy this band immensely. Not often does a record like this come along, one that seems to narrate a story of fiction, perhaps non-fiction if the lyrics are anything to go by. Records that evolve like they’re books are interesting by nature. ‘Accelerated Evolution’ would be a best seller if it were. The deeply affecting atmosphere generated by the heavy-handed guitars and subtle symphonies slowly signifies is impacting and unparalleled within the genre.
There is a degree of pretension attached to this record (which is shown in a glaringly obvious manner on songs like ‘Away’ with its seemingly endless solos), in my eyes, but that doesn’t stop me from enjoying the unfolding of the many numerous layers that this record has. Perhaps most importantly are the lyrics, which don’t immediately hit the listener. It takes a lot of reflection and devotion, on the part of the listener, to truly digest the lyrics, which tell a story of love, loss and human relationships. This record is intensely passionate, and that’s something that is apparent all the way through as the instrumentation and lyrics from Devin stretch out to the listener. The lyrics are made even more apt along the journey as they tend to describe a lot of the listeners thoughts and feelings throughout the record. The consuming passion, the flame of intense love and skill at switching moods hit the listener like a tonne of bricks in the face. Though the narrative may be simplistic, the complexities of the overall story and how it is told make this one of those records that takes a number of listens, over many years, to fully understand and appreciate the context of the material.
So, who do we have behind door number one: the vocals. Devin Townsend seems to be the center of creativity for this band, since its his band (as well as the fact that he engineered the record and wrote most of the material). His vocals are emotional and wretched with a number of different, yet still painstakingly beautiful, contexts. From the pain of songs like the fantastic ‘Storm’, to the mature approach of ‘Depth Charge’. Devin appears to have a talent for song writing which makes his vocals a central point throughout. Though the more experimental themes are developed through the instrumentation, his vocals are the most intense part of the experience since they’re so emotional and he sings about some very rewarding topics. Though they can some times become overly sentimental on his part. Devin also pulls his weight on guitar too, adding an enhanced feel to the symphonic soundscapes that fellow guitarist Brian Waddell and keyboardist Dave Young already lay down superbly. In fact, the keyboards and bass, though underlying throughout, are perhaps more significant than the guitars in terms of portraying a mature and dynamic sound. The guitars have a raw quality to them, given how distorted and hurt by past experiences they sound (shown typically on ‘Deadhead’). The record however, is typified by Devin’s brilliant performance throughout. From the sorrowful ‘Deadhead’ to the jovial ‘Traveller’ which contains some instantly catchy drums, this record serves only to reward the listener with some of the best, and perhaps more mainstream, progressive metal.

Mar 31, 2003 Accelerated Evolution is the sixth studio album by Canadian musician Devin Townsend, released in 2003. The album, written and produced by Townsend, was a mix of musical styles from alternative rock and hard rock to progressive metal.

Accelerated Evolution is the sixth studio album by Canadian musician Devin Townsend, released in 2003. The album, written and produced by Townsend, was a mix of musical styles from alternative and hard rock to progressive metal.^[1] Townsend, the lead vocalist and guitarist, assembled a group of Vancouver musicians to perform with him on the album: guitarist Brian Waddell, drummer Ryan Van Poederooyen, bassist Mike Young, and keyboardist Dave Young. This lineup, the Devin Townsend Band, was Townsend's first dedicated lineup for his solo material, and was created as a counterpart to Townsend's extreme metal project Strapping Young Lad.

THE DEVIN TOWNSEND BAND 'Accelerated Evolution' (Inside Out) 01. Depth Charge 02. Random Analysis 04. Sunday Afternoon 09. Townsend worked on the band's first album, Accelerated Evolution, at the same time he was working on Strapping Young Lad, spending half the week on one and half on the other. Accelerated Evolution, named for the pace of putting a new band together in under a year, 14 was released a month after Strapping Young Lad. The Devin Townsend Band Edit. Accelerated Evolution (March 31, 2003) Synchestra (January 31, 2006) Devin Townsend Project Edit. Ki (May 22, 2009) Addicted (November 17, 2009) Deconstruction (June 20, 2011) Ghost (June 20, 2011) Epicloud (September 18, 2012) Sky Blue (October 27, 2014) Transcendence (September 9, 2016) Strapping Young Lad Edit. See full list on hevydevy.fandom.com.

Accelerated Evolution was written and recorded at the same time as Strapping Young Lad's self-titled album, with Townsend dividing his energy between the two. Accelerated Evolution was recorded in Vancouver, British Columbia from September to November 2002, and was released on Townsend's independent label, HevyDevy Records, in March 2003. The album was well received by critics^[2] for its blend of genres and influences, its musical accessibility, and its large-scale rock production style.

Background[edit]

During the creation of his early solo albums Infinity (1998) and Physicist (2000), Devin Townsend went through personal struggles that affected his writing ability. These struggles were resolved on Terria (2001), which Townsend described as 'a really healing record'. After Terria, Townsend felt a newfound enthusiasm for his music, saying, 'Bring it on. I'm going to be so fucking sensitive but so intense, and be unafraid to be either.'^[3] In 2002, Townsend began work on his next two albums. He reunited his extreme metal project Strapping Young Lad, which had been on hiatus for four years,^[4] and began writing the band's new release, Strapping Young Lad (SYL).

At the same time, Townsend formed a new, permanent band 'on par with Strapping' to record and tour for his solo releases.^[3] The Devin Townsend Band consisted of Brian Waddell on guitar, Ryan Van Poederooyen on drums, and brothers Mike Young and Dave Young on bass and keyboards, respectively. Townsend performed guitar, vocals, and production, as he did in Strapping Young Lad. Townsend chose members of local bands who 'hadn't had the same experiences' and could give a fresh perspective on 'all those emotions' that were present in his solo material. He found it 'refreshing' to play with people who appreciated his solo material more than Strapping Young Lad's.^[3] Notable was the absence of drummer Gene Hoglan of Strapping Young Lad,^[5] who had played on Townsend's previous three solo albums.

Townsend wrote and produced the band's first album at the same time he was working on SYL,^[3] spending half the week on one and half on the other.^[6] The album was engineered and mixed by Townsend and Shaun Thingvold, who has worked on many of Townsend's and Strapping Young Lad's albums. It had the working title Relationships,^[2] but was renamed Accelerated Evolution, a nod to the frantic pace of putting a new band together in under a year.^[3]

Music[edit]

Accelerated Evolution was written as 'the polar opposite' of SYL.^[7] The album blended aspects of different genres, including alternative rock, hard rock, and progressive metal,^[1] with elements of 'heaviness, ambience, humor, and experimentalism'.^[7] The album has been described as more melodic and more rock-based than SYL or Physicist, yet 'more song-oriented' than Terria,^[5] with influences by John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, and Rush.^[8] Songs such as 'Storm', 'Suicide', and 'Sunday Afternoon' were compared to Townsend's Infinity, but were noted as 'less frantic and more mature';^[5] Despite this, 'Deadhead' derived its name from an extreme industrial metal track with the same title from Godflesh's 1989 album Streetcleaner.^[9] Townsend wrote the album to be 'commercially viable', making his existing style more concise and accessible but without going so far as to write 'pop songs'.^[3] Townsend utilized clean vocals much more than in his previous albums,^[7] and produced and mixed the album in his trademark 'wall of sound' style, blending 'layers upon layers of guitars, keyboards, and vocals'.^[7]

More Devin Townsend Band Accelerated Evolution Rar Images

Release[edit]

Accelerated Evolution was released in March 2003 on Townsend's independent label, HevyDevy Records. It is distributed in Canada by HevyDevy, in Japan by Sony, and in Europe and North America by InsideOut. The album art was created by Travis Smith, who also did the art for Terria and SYL. InsideOut also released a special edition of the album which contained a 3-track EP called Project EKO, Townsend's first foray into electronica.^[10] The album reached number 135 on the French albums chart^[11] and number 249 on the Japanese albums chart.^[12]

Prior to the formation of the Devin Townsend Band, Townsend had represented his solo releases live with the Strapping Young Lad lineup; the band would play one set of Strapping Young Lad songs and one set of Devin Townsend songs.^[13] After the release of Accelerated Evolution, Townsend began touring with The Devin Townsend Band, at times separately from Strapping Young Lad^[14] and at times sharing the bill.^[15] After playing two release shows in Vancouver in July 2003,^[16] The Devin Townsend Band toured Canada with Strapping Young Lad and Zimmers Hole in October 2003.^[17] This was followed by a North American tour with progressive metal band Symphony X through November and December 2003.^[17][18]

Critical reception[edit]

Accelerated Evolution was well received by critics.^[2] Mike G. of Metal Maniacs called Accelerated Evolution 'the album of the year', praising it for 'the hard-to-accomplish trick of being extreme yet accessible, simultaneously heavy 'n' rockin' yet majestic and beautiful.'^[8] William Hughes of Sputnikmusic called it 'amazing', saying the album 'has elements that will appeal to fans of all different genres, from progressive to metal.'^[19] Alex Henderson of Allmusic called the album 'excellent', and praised Townsend's ability to blend genres and influences: 'The Canadian rocker provides enough downtuned guitars to put this CD in the alt rock category. And yet Accelerated Evolution has a big sound that suggests the pop-metal, arena rock and hard rock of the '70s and '80s – big melodies, big harmonies, big guitars, big vocals, big production.'^[1] Chris Hawkins of KNAC.com said, 'Like always, what Devin manages to do is take the most infectious rhythm, place his stamp upon it, and thus create something completely original.'^[7] Xander Hoose of Chronicles of Chaos compared the album favorably to SYL, noting that 'there is more variation, and the songs are more memorable and layered than their one-dimensional SYL counterparts.' Hoose added, 'For those who thought Terria was going too much in the wrong direction, Accelerated Evolution will probably come as a relief.'^[5]

See Full List On Hevydevy.fandom.com

Track listing[edit]

All tracks are written by Devin Townsend.

Inside Out Music's special edition of Accelerated Evolution included Project EKO, an electronica EP by Townsend.

Chart performance[edit]

Personnel[edit]

• Devin Townsend – guitar, vocals, ambience
• Ryan Van Poederooyen – drums
• Mike Young – bass
• Brian Waddell – guitar
• Dave Young – keyboards

Production[edit]

• Devin Townsend – production, audio engineering, mixing
• Shaun Thingvold – engineering, mixing
• Goran Finnberg – mastering
• Misha Rajaratnam, Dan Kearley, Carla Levis, Scott Cooke, Jay Van Poederooyen, Lori Bridger, Chris Guy – assistance

Artwork[edit]

Devin Townsend Band Accelerated Evolution Rar - Nohsacanada

• Omer Cordell – photography (credited as Omer Shaked)
• Travis Smith – graphics, layout

References[edit]

1. ^ ^abcHenderson, Alex. 'Accelerated Evolution: Review.' Allmusic.
2. ^ ^abcSharpe-Young, Garry (2005). New Wave of American Heavy Metal. pp. 115. New Plymouth: Zonda Books Limited. ISBN0-9582684-0-1.
3. ^ ^abcdefPopoff, Martin (Winter–Spring 2003). 'Strapping Young Lad.' Lollipop Magazine (61).
4. ^Gramlich, Chris (February 2003). 'The Reluctant Return of Strapping Young Lad'. Exclaim!. Archived from the original on 2008-12-02. Retrieved 2008-04-28.
5. ^ ^abcdHoose, Xander (May 21, 2003). 'Devin Townsend Band – Accelerated Evolution.' Chronicles of Chaos.
6. ^Lord of the Wasteland; Lehtinen, Arto (June 16, 2005). 'Interview With Gene Hoglan'. Metal-Rules.com. Archived from the original on August 21, 2008.
7. ^ ^abcdeHawkins, Chris (May 6, 2003). 'Reviews – Devin Townsend Accelerated EvolutionArchived July 13, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.' KNAC.com.
8. ^ ^abG., Mike (September 2003). 'The Devin Townsend Band: No Holds Barred.' Metal Maniacs.
9. ^Yardley, Miranda. 'Devin Townsend: 'I Found Out About Playing Damnation Festival on Twitter''. Terrorizer. Retrieved 1 August 2018.
10. ^'Justin' (October 2, 2003). 'Devin Townsend interview.' Metal Storm.
11. ^ ^ab(in French) 'The Devin Townsend Band – Accelerated Evolution.' Les Charts. Retrieved May 27, 2009.
12. ^ ^ab(in Japanese) 'アクセルレイティッド・エヴォルーション/デヴィン・タウンゼンド.' Oricon. Retrieved June 1, 2009.
13. ^Gibson, Doug (June 26, 2005). 'Interview with Strapping Young Lad's Jed Simon.' Metal Underground.
14. ^Turner, Tracy. 'Devin Townsend Biography'. HevyDevy Records. Archived from the original on 2008-01-18.
15. ^Kee, Chris (May 2003). 'Live Review: Strapping Young Lad/Devin Townsend Band/Zimmers Hole.' Powerplay (44).
16. ^Blabbermouth.net (July 21, 2003). 'The Devin Townsend Band: Live Videos Posted OnlineArchived January 19, 2004, at the Wayback Machine.' Retrieved May 27, 2009.
17. ^ ^abRVP Drums. 'Tour DatesArchived August 20, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.' Retrieved May 27, 2009.
18. ^Blabbermouth.net (August 14, 2003). 'Symphony X to Tour with the Devin Townsend BandArchived January 8, 2004, at the Wayback Machine.' Retrieved May 27, 2009.
19. ^Hughes, Mike (November 29, 2007). 'Devin Townsend: Accelerated Evolution.' Sputnikmusic.

External links[edit]

• Accelerated Evolution (HevyDevy Records)
• Accelerated Evolution (InsideOut Music)

Devin Townsend Band Accelerated Evolution Rare