“Now I’m only chillin’ in front of God.”
Devin Townsend is responsible for some of the most formative moments in my explorations into music. His contributions to progressive metal are timeless, from early records like Ocean Machine and Terria to recent brainwaves like Deconstruction. Townsend‘s reach goes far beyond metal, such as the new-age Ghost, groovy Ki, or esoteric Empath. He’s rarely seen doing one thing at a time and is usually the sole creative force behind each record. I was lucky enough to see him perform acoustically in, just after he’d wrapped the production of his new album Lightwork. In his classic warm-and-wry style, he quite publicly wrestled with his feelings for the album. He confessed that working with a producer was a major change for him, and the challenges posed by making a more “accessible” record. By the end of the set, he decided he liked it, a lot. Now it’s in our hands, I’m not surprised that Townsend found Lightwork tough to process, as I’ve had the same challenge.
Our first insight to the record was “Moonpeople“, a relatively straightforward song that presented some evidence of Lightwork’s quirkiness. It’s an upbeat rock song that de-emphasises its guitars in favour of organs and glitchy vocals, horns and strings, as well as fade-outs and sudden turns. There’s plenty of little complexities to it, and whilst it may have you tapping your foot sensibly at times, it fails to make a strong impression. “Lightworker” is a more impactful track, at least at its chorus, which channels the power-metal Townsend we know from records like Epicloud. Furthermore, the everything-and-the-kitchen-sink approach to decorating “Lightworker” comes across better.
“Equinox” follows with some memorable riffs and an excellent bridge where harsh vocals blend well with the bonus textures. “Call of the Void” comes across like a “ballad to improving yourself”, with a powerful chorus, reminding me of the anthems on Sky Blue. Later on, “Vacation” is an acoustic song that is a bit of a letdown compared to what we’ve heard Townsend can do in his gentler moments or solo sets. These tracks comprise the more “normal” moments on Lightwork, signposting a record that focuses on quieter moments and sonic variety.
From a cursory glance, the first half of the record is nearly as accessible as Addicted! or Sky Blue. From track five onwards, the record veers in an unusual direction and indulges in strange studio experiments. In a way, this is not surprising: they’re most similar to the tracks that made it on Townsend‘s recent release The Puzzle. That record had a clear, cohesive goal: to be a rapid kaleidoscope of shifting ideas. On this record, however, including such tracks feels like the strangest filler you’ve ever heard. Tracks like “Heartbreaker“, “Dimensions“, and “Heavy Burden” go off the rails, crumbling under the weight of their own ideas. They sound like everything, or at least they sound the mixing engineer having a breakdown. Despite these moments being wrapped up in maximalist complexities, it’s unforgivably unique and jubilant. For you, this mood which might see you through it, but for me, these tracks were a puzzle that I didn’t want to solve.
Speaking of the sound, it’s a mixed bag. At every moment there’s a lot to hear: Townsend‘s fantastic-as-ever vocals, backing vocals, synths, strings and orchestras, and goofy samples galore. The record opens and closes with gentle ocean sounds and foghorns, and between-song transitions are often very pleasant. This array is fun to behold, even if it feels like a bit much at times. The cost is that, to make space for all this, some of the traditional elements of the rock-sound have been hamstrung. Throughout the record, the drums are a non-event. It’s there to provide structure and nothing more, like the local support act that leaves even before they’ve spent their drink tokens at the bar. Guitars are occasionally punchy on the low end, delivering Townsend‘s usual palm-muted crunch, but speak only through low-pass filters as if in discomfort. I’ll say the bass, when it gets a moment to shine, is quite nice, slipping and sliding fretlessly like on Terria.
There are some nice bits towards the end of the album. The longer “Children of God” develops gradually and closes the album in a lovely way, with a catchy main melody and a blissful outro. “Celestial Signals” is a strong track that was originally a demo from the Transcendence sessions. It’s got a really satisfying first half with great verses and choruses, though the bridge goes back to the perhaps-overbearing choir-mode. For what it’s worth, Townsend‘s approach to releasing demos has always been admirable, and Lightwork is no different, with a whole extra disk containing ten demos I wasn’t able to review. If, like me, you’re yearning for a more stripped-back Devin Townsend experience, perhaps it’s on the demos. You can also stick to the more focused songs like “Call of the Void“, “Equinox“, or “Heavy Burden“, which are good on their own and make good use of the ‘Lightwork’ sound.
What Lightwork makes clear is that Townsend is determined to seek new sonic horizons, whatever the cost. I’ll always salute that, but I can’t say it’s led to an entirely good record in this case.
5/10
Lightwork releases this Friday via InsideOutMusic, and you can pre-order the record here.