JUNE IS TELL A FRIEND ABOUT DREDG MONTH
Wednesday, May 13th, 2009 at 12:58pm by Vince Neilstein
MetalSucks contributor and Hipster-Hater Anso DF posted a fine piece about not-metal-but-adored-by-many-metal-fans San Francisco stoner-groove band Dredg on his excellent blog Hipsters out of Metal! We’ve heard all of Dredg’s new record The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion (out June 9th), and let me tell you, it is fucking boner-worthy as all hell. “Information,” the obvious choice as first single, is also quite obviously one of the worst and simplest songs on a record full of great and complex songs, but c’est la vie. I’ll let our friend Anso take it from here:
Art-rock quartet Dredg doesn’t exactly do themselves any favors. Their name is tragically similar to powerfully inferior bands like Staind and Trapt. Get past that, and you’ll find their sound is flittery and intellectual; I bet Neil Peart heard them and was like Goddamn these lyrics are pretentious. And worst of all, they signed to a major label that didn’t have the stones to promote them. Which isn’t to say Atlantic did nothing with 2004’s brilliant Terry Date-produced set Catch Without Arms, nor that Dredg is not a difficult act. But while the Discovery Price concept is a strong inducement to purchase, it doesn’t work if the album is invisible to purchasers. Every fucking body who is aware of Dredg LOVES them. That there will be more of us in the coming weeks is indicated by their yawning, quaking new single “Information” (above). And we’re not closeted Coldplay fans like all those Thrice-humpers.
The video for the new single “Information,” after el jumparino.
So, is it just me, or do they kinda sorta sound like Coldplay? Just a little bit?
just a little bit….just a little bit…
YOU SOUND A LOT LIKE COLDPLAY CJ.
lol Alright. I guess.
I love dredg, but that song is weak. Oh well, the album will still be amazing.
Never been able to get into this band. Don’t know what all the hype is about.
This track reminds me a bit of “The Killers”, and just to be clear, that’s a compliment.
Fucking FUCK!!!! It’s about time these guys get some recognition. They are an amazingly talented band, and while not metal, are worth of all the praise they get. They have a killer live show, especially in a small setting and these guys are very down to earth. Some of the coolest guys to hang out with. Nerd fact, they recorded El Cielo at George Lucas’ Skywalker Ranch.
Yeah, I feel like this will be a very poor representation of the band to those who have never heard Dredg before. Song is just not great.
And El Cielo is an awesome album.
Whoa! That’s weird, I only started listening to them a couple of days ago, and here they are…
But I agree, this band is amazing, I couldn’t believe I hadn’t heard or seen them somewhere else before-hand..
Have been a fan for a while. Love the singer’s voice. I see why this is the first single, but I’m not that into it.
Cant get into the new album, their live shows have been lack luster after El Ceilo as well
Gawd damn I love this band!
I am diggin certain things about this song. I love El Cielo, but didnt really get into alot of Catch Without Arms. This record seems better to me. Great live band and definetly original. Alot of their stuff is heavier than this song, so i guess it isnt the best representation for them.
the moment the drummer started double tasking the piano, it lost me…pick one .
ehhh, sounds like evrything else to me, and I listen to plenty of un metal things.
can someone tell me what makes them different?[ im not being a dick, Im asking as someone who doesnt know this band..]
Seen these guys twice now, enjoyed the fuck out of El Cielo and Catch Without Arms.
They’ve broken this song out live before, it’s very strange to witness, I don’t know if the song is weird or if it’s just overwhelmingly meh, I do enjoy it more than Savior though. The latest disc is still good though, but it’s way more bass heavy than the last two have been, I don’t know if it’s just me but it feels very stripped down in retrospect to the other two.
@ Noel, do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of Leitmotif, of El Cielo, and you will see what’s so remarkable about these guys. They have been an innovator in sound, most of the things you hear that are similar have been influenced by them in some form or fashion. They’ve been at it longer than most.
@ Dave, this go round they’ve developed a more of a funk feel. Not their typical production style, but still distinctly dredg
This is perfect for radio play, but will they get any?
Saw this guys a month or so ago (with Torche opening!!! funny to see the mostly emo crowd at the show and their reaction Torche) and I have to say I was pretty underwhelmed with their set.
Personally Leitmotif was the easiest for me to get into because of the more aggressive riffs and El Cielo has really grown on me over time. Catch without Arms just hasn’t stuck with me.
This new song doesn’t do much for me either, it seems to be missing all the dynamics that made their earlier stuff so powerful.
WTF?
Come on guys lets hears ome metal, what is this garbage? If not metal then something that is testosterone driven, not estrogen driven.
So…this sounds like Coldplay. Kind of negates the “we’re not closet Coldplay fans” statement.
agreed. this song totally sounds like Coldplay. too artsy fartsy but way less vaginal than Thrice. that’s right folks, farts > vagina
however: queefs > coldplay
(also, this song is terrible.)
I love dredg. To bad the singer is a tucking toolbag.
Dredg is solid
Seen em live by accident. INSTANT fan after that. these guys seriously rule. El Cielo is a fantastic album!!
Stoner-groove band lol!
I saw them live at the Metro in Chicago before El Cielo came out. I went by myself, repurchased their album cuz I lost it, bought a tee-shirt, got hit in the head by a drumstick and left immediately after their set. I used to love this band, Leitmotif is their magnum opus. It was a time I am fond of reminiscing.
Now, Catch without Arms was not bad, nor was it great. Especially for Dredg. The Pariah etc. is a step back, a simplified progression of El Cielo. Where did the band go with their ingenuity? The lead singer has never been great at writing lyrics, but the content on the last three has been x-tra cheesed to the point where some songs are hard to take serious. I’m on a hungover rant, but people behave like this band can’t do any wrong when they seem to be watering their sound down each new album. bah scum fuck.
My musical tastes expand far beyond metal, but this still doesn’t sound like anything special to me. It’s just boring, it sounds like something that should be on standard pop/rock radio. Nice album art though.
This is the first time I have ever heard this band and I can’t see myself going out of my way to hear them again. This site has made me a fan of some bands I may not have listened to otherwise but more importantly I get to avoid bands like this so I don’t waste my time or money on music I don’t like.
Listen to the ‘Leitmotif’ and you will be blown away at the creativity. Its fucking heavy. not like the new stuff. Listen to El Cielo and you’ll here a whole other band. Really catchy, trance-like metal jazz, also amazing… and completely unmarketable. The third has really good hooks and sappy music. Soft and mellow music that masks the underlying metaphors for the agony of having the demand of the popular music biz reshape your sound, thoughts and style. A good album. It really hits ya when you kinda realize what there saying. As for the new album… im kinda scared to listen to it, cuz they’re going down hill fast. I saw them in Sd recently and 4 years ago too… I just wished they sicked to thier guns and played the hard and heavy hitting progressive songs they where so ingeniously making before. Anyways: Leitmotif
Ahh dredg. For those that don’t know they’v been doing their thing for 16 years. Before being signed they toured their butts off. Back when leitmotif still had national geographic artwork I must have seen them several times. Regardless of what they sounded like then or now they are good at what they do. How many of you’re favorite bands have put out a ” concept album” or 3? Since when is the ability to play drums and keys at once a bad thing? That’s talent or skill for sure. Maybe dredg is just too progressive and intellectual for some. For those that somehow put coldplay and dredg in the same category or play the “sounds like” game please don’t ever review music for a living. The new dredg album is awesome, don’t worry. And yes, they picked one of the less unique tracks to make a video. Wait till you hear it all before phreaking out.
I liked Leitmotif and El Cielo. Catch without Arms was so pedestrian in comparison that they lost me as a fan.