Between The Buried And Me “Colors II”

The masters of progressive metallic symphonies grace us with their ninth full length (considering Automata as one cohesive work here), and it’s more of the same elements we’ve come to expect. And while Giles’ church choir organ synthesizer is insistently blaring over Dusty and Paul’s chunky leads, there’s very little that’s left as a memorable takeaway from this massive, lengthy listen. The Mr. Bungle traits and funny sound effects churn here and there, but there are no epic ballads ala “Sun of Nothing” or “Prequel To The Sequel.” There’s also nothing quite like “Goodbye to Everything.” Instead, there’s just endless wankery and droning song lengths that should have focused more on songs like “Stare Into The Abyss” (which is my favorite song on the record). In the end, it plays out more like “The Great Misdirect II,” an album that I found went on and on and never caught my attention. BTBAM are one of the best in the business and are true professionals, but the formula has become a bit predictable at this point and feels like the band is sitting in the studio stroking their egos, rather than delivering raw emotion.