Band:	Strapping Young Lad
Album:	The New Black
Style:	Industrial metal, Thrash metal
Release date:	July 11, 2006
Guest review by:	Passenger

01. Decimator
02. You Suck
03. Antiproduct
04. Monument
05. Wrong Side
06. Hope
07. Far Beyond Metal
08. Fucker
09. Almost Again
10. Polyphony
11. The New Black
12. The Long Pig [bonus]
13. Zodiac [Melvins cover] [bonus]

I have to confess that I never managed to fully appreciate Strapping Young Lad before "SYL." Their first album, while ingenious, always felt inconsistent to me, and "City," I realize it's innovative and modern, but I couldn't get past how fragmented the songs sound the first time you listen them, even though I've given that album a few tries. It's true that sometimes, when something starts by seeming strange, it's hard to get over the first impression. And Strapping Young Lad is the definition of strange. However, "The New Black" changed everything for me.

The fact is that all typical elements are still present here, the mechanical heaviness, the experimentalism, the characteristic lyrics. Despite that, I feel tempted to say this is their most accessible album to date. Either that or their songwritting has just become so consistent that they can now make the weirdest tempo changes sound natural. In all fairness, it's probably a bit of both. I may listen to a track like "Almost Again" and admit it could've been adapted to Devin Townsend's solo project, but it keeps on reminding me how similar it is to what has been done in previous works as well.

This is, still, a complex album of contrasts, even though you'll find it catchier and less chaotic than "Alien," which is why I find it more attractive. The mathematical riffing of "Decimator," the technical and humoristic "You Suck" or the impressive textures of "Wrong Side" are intense, crushing, suffocating; but, it's in the less direct ones that this album acquires an inspirational dimension. "Antiproduct" knocked me off my chair; besides being particularly memorable, the dynamic with which it evolves into a middle section that has to be heard to be believed, is astonishing. "Hope" was unexpected, due to its slow and live atmosphere. The duo "Plyophony/The New Black" is delightfully diverse and creative.

Even so, I consider all songs to be very satisfying, and I found myself looking for interesting details and the next original change to come up as I don't remember of doing in a long time. I don't think any fan has to fear "The New Black" because the differences it presents come as naturally as the ones that have happened from album to album in the band's discography. I, for one, felt compelled to rediscover and reinterpret their older records, something that an (amazing) album like "SYL" didn't do, and I'm enjoying them more than ever. "The New Black" really called my attention, and I'll definitely be waiting for Devin Townsend to come back after the time off he is, reportedly, going to take now. In the meantime, you'll want to hear this one more than you think you do.