Rosetta - A Determinism of Morality (2010)

Translation Loss Records, May 25, 2010

Tracklist

1. Ayil

2. Je N’en Connais Pas La Fin

3. Blue Day For Croatoa

4. Release

5. Resolve

6. Renew

7. A Determinism of Morality

This entry is one in a series of ten-year retrospectives from my favorite albums of 2010. Rosetta, a band whose lead vocalist is also a high school teacher, has described their music in a tongue-in-cheek way as “metal for astronauts”. Their brand of atmospheric and slow building sludge metal does have a floating, spacey feel to it and is for a patient listener. This album stays true to their sound and has plenty of ambience and atmospheric instrumentation. As solid of an album as A Determinism of Morality is, I do feel like they could have done a little more with it, as the song tempos and vocals are pretty repetitive with the clean singing underutilized. The percussion, ambience, and sludgy rhythms are the highlight of this album and really come to the forefront on track three, “Blue Day for Croatoa”, as the vocals are dialed back. “Release” is another track that stands out with some cleans and has a slower, crushing ending. 

Rosetta's 2010 release earns a score of 7/10, and is one that requires some time to absorb. "Release", "Je N’en Connais Pas La Fin", and "Blue Day For Croatoa" eventually stood out as the highlights. You have to pay close attention to the songs to detect the subtle nuances and eclecticism here as A Determinism of Morality isn’t a record that will catch on with the first listen. Rosetta may call themselves metal for astronauts, but you don’t need to be in the space program to find their music enjoyable.

Deftones - Diamond Eyes (2010)

Reprise Records, May 4, 2010

Tracklist

1. Diamond Eyes
2. Royal
3.CMND/CTRL
4. You've Seen the Butcher
5.Beauty School
6. Prince
7.Rocket Skates
8. Sextape
9. Risk
10. 976-EVIL
11.This Place is Death
12. Do You Believe (bonus track)
13. Ghosts (bonus track)

A favorite of critics and musicians alike, Deftones’ style of alternative metal takes the term influential to the next level. Like the album before it, Diamond Eyes is a study in the beauty of contrasts. Guitarist Stephen Carpenter's affinity for the Swedish technical metal titans Meshuggah has been well documented, as is vocalist Chino Moreno's appreciation of decidedly softer acts like Interpol and Depeche Mode. Deftones' guitar sound has also evolved over the years - initially they used six-string guitars on their first few albums, before incorporating seven strings and finally eight, as is heard on Diamond Eyes. The presence of Carpenter's pummeling 8-string riffs and Chino's dynamic vocal performance ensure that both influences are well represented here. The keyboard and DJ sounds from Frank Delgado along with the technical rhythm section of bassist Sergio Vega and drummer Abe Cunningham add further nuance to the band's sound.

The circumstances behind this album were very difficult ones, as Diamond Eyes was written while the band members were in the midst of a tragic situation with the loss of their founding bassist Chi in an auto accident. Part of the therapeutic process in the midst of these terrible circumstances was the direction Deftones took toward the tone of the album. Chino has stated that the band made a concerted effort to pour their energy and emotion into a new album that was more optimistic. The members of Deftones kept writing together and reworking the songs until they sounded perfect, and it shows. Also worth noting is that Chino's vocal performance on this album is far superior to their previous effort Saturday Night Wrist, an album he admits he dislikes because he sounded unconfident. Here he sounds much more in control, and fully centered on these songs. “Royal” is a nice showcase of his vocal strength as he switches effortlessly from soothing tenor vocals to screams that convey the ferocity of a cougar. In addition to the wide range of vocal styles, the structure of the album is also varied and set up very well. Two of the album's heaviest, most riff-centric cuts, "You've Seen the Butcher" and "Rocket Skates", are immediately followed up with the two softest, most serene tracks. "Beauty School" in particular is a song that really excels in the laid-back, ballad style. 

Diamond Eyes is a project I see as being the most essential record of the year. The dichotomy on this album had a major impact and influence, especially to the progressive metal and djent movement of the decade. While maybe not as influential as their 2000 landmark White Pony album, it at least comes close. Meshuggah is the group that is often viewed as starting that subgenre, but Deftones were the band that combined that riff style with a dynamic vocal style that made melody just as important to the songs. For these reasons, Diamond Eyes makes a strong case as the best album of 2010 and earns a score of 10/10.