It seems that Gojira have pulled a Mastodon. With their latest album, Magma, the French brand has traded much of their progressive tendencies in favor of alternative rock. Mind you, I'm not necessarily complaining. Rock is a completely valid genre when done right (and one lacking in great output right now), but with a band like this it feels important to analyze the shift a bit. It was jarring enough to me, someone who has never been a big follower of the group, from the very beginning. I can only imagine what the devotees are going to say.
So what is Magma all about? Well for starters, it is of pretty average length at around 45 minutes. This is in contrast with previous albums clocking in at closer to an hour or more. The song structures are also largely traditional verse-chorus-verse affairs. "Stranded" is a track that has grown on me greatly since it premiered as a lead single, but when you boil it down this is a pretty simple arrangement for a band that is often praised for its creativity. Love that guitar hook though. It will stick in your head for days. "Silvera" features a little more technical showmanship in the instrumentation, but it still strikes me as more of a rock song than anything else.
There are a few tracks that could be argued as being "progressive" like "Magma" or "The Shooting Star," but they come off as more atmospheric and don't seem to really go anywhere. In fact, the whole album left me feeling like we were building up to something only to have it peter out with "Low Lands" and "Liberation." And as much as I dig the trademark guitar effect from "Stranded," it seems like Gojira were a little too in love with it. You can find it as a critical hook on several other songs in one form or another. Where's the variety?
For all of my critiques though, there is still something about Magma that keeps me coming back. It has a certain addictive quality; at least in terms of certain songs. I may end up picking this up for "Stranded," "Silvera," "The Cell," and "Pray" alone. Rated in terms of alternative music, these are all catchy songs with enough grit in the vocals and crunchy distortion to get me headbanging. So if you are looking for an album that you don't have to think too hard about and you can jam without scaring off some of your friends, chances are you will enjoy this. But if you go in expecting From Mars To Sirius, Enslaved, or even shades of Tool; you will be dissapointed.