NationMaster - Encyclopedia: The Blackening

The Blackening is the sixth studio album from Oakland-based thrash metal band Machine Head. With sales of nearly 15,000 in its first week of release in the U.S. this has become their highest charting effort yet. The album also debuted at #16 in the UK charts, making this Machine Head's second highest charting album in the UK along with The More Things Change (The Burning Red debuted at #13), as a consequence of the hype surrounding the album's release and the mostly positive reviews it has received. The album debuted on the United World Chart at #28 with sales of 50,000 and has sold nearly 100,000 copies world wide. Image File history File links MachineHead-TheBlackening. ... A studio album is a collection of previously unreleased, studio-recorded tracks by a recording artist. ... This article is about the band. ... March 26 is the 85th day of the year (86th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... is the 86th day of the year (87th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ... Oakland is the name of several places in the United States of America: Oakland, Alabama Oakland, California (The best-known city with this name) Oakland, Florida Oakland, Maine Oakland, Maryland Oakland, Michigan Oakland, Missouri Oakland, Nebraska Oakland, New Jersey Oakland, Oklahoma Oakland, Oregon Oakland, Pennsylvania Oakland, Rhode Island Oakland, Tennessee... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Largest metro area Greater Los Angeles Area Ranked 3rd - Total 158,302 sq mi (410,000 kmÂ²) - Width 250 miles (400 km) - Length 770 miles (1,240 km) - % water 4. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... For other uses, see November (disambiguation). ... See also: 2006 in music (UK) Musical groups established in 2006 Record labels established in 2006 Ti // January â€“ James Nicholl, drummer of Pay*Ola became ill and was admitted to hospital. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Groove metal, often associated with neo-thrash/post-thrash and power groove, is a term sometimes used to describe a derivative of thrash metal which took its current form during the early 1990s. ... Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music, one of the extreme metal subgenres that is characterised by its signature high speed and aggression. ... In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. ... Roadrunner Records is a major record label that concentrates on metal bands. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Image:Robb Flynn. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music, owned by All Media Guide. ... Image File history File links 4_stars. ... Blabbermouth may refer to: Blabbermouth. ... Image File history File links Stars10095. ... Blender is an American magazine that bills itself as the ultimate guide to music and more. ... Image File history File links 3. ... The tone or style of this article or section may not be appropriate for Wikipedia. ... Image File history File links 5_stars. ... Metal Hammer (sometimes MetalHammer) is a monthly heavy metal magazine in the United Kingdom, Ireland and in Germany, Austria, Spain, Greece, Poland, Hungary, Switzerland, Serbia and Montenegro by a different publisher. ... Image File history File links Stars10100. ... For other uses, see NME (disambiguation). ... Image File history File links Stars10050. ... Rock Sound magazine launched in the UK in 1999 and has built up a great reputation for championing new music. ... Rocklouder is an British online music magazine. ... Image File history File links 5_stars. ... RockSomething is a music webzine which mainly covers hard rock and metal. ... Image File history File links 5_stars. ... Total Guitar is a monthly magazine in the United Kingdom. ... Image File history File links Stars10090. ... This article is about the band. ... Through the Ashes of Empires is the fifth studio album by Oakland-based heavy metal band Machine Head. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... A studio album is a collection of previously unreleased, studio-recorded tracks by a recording artist. ... â€œOaklandâ€ redirects here. ... Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music, one of the extreme metal subgenres that is characterised by its signature high speed and aggression. ... This article is about the band. ... The More Things Change is the second album by Oakland based heavy metal band Machine Head. ... The Burning Red is the third album by heavy metal band, Machine Head. ...

History

In an interview with MTV.com, Flynn stated before the CD's release, "We really didn't want to play it safe on this record. We kind of came back from the dead with Through the Ashes of Empires, and the safest thing we could've done would've been to just stay in [that] vein and try to keep that formula because it worked last time. Not that there was a formula really. We just started writing and the music that we were writing just started going in this far more complex, intricate and layered direction. It's not like we sat there and intentionally did it. It just kind of [happened]. Pretty soon we ended up having 10-minute-long songs. But the thing that's really cool about it is, we're not just jamming on three riffs for 10 minutes. This is molten riffage — just 20, 30 crushing riffs per song."^[1] This article is about the original U.S. music television channel. ... Through the Ashes of Empires is the fifth studio album by Oakland-based heavy metal band Machine Head. ...

Lyrical themes

Lyrical themes on The Blackening include love, war, organized religion, anger in society and Machine Head's ‘winner take all’ spirit. The album's first single, "Aesthetics Of Hate", is a retaliation that captures the band's anger towards an article written by William Grim for the Iconoclast titled 'Aesthetics Of Hate: R.I.P. Dimebag Abbott, & Good Riddance'. Dimebag was murdered while performing on-stage with his band Damageplan on December 8, 2004 by Nathan Gale. Grim praised Dimebag's death and wrote he was "an ignorant, barbaric, untalented possessor of a guitar" who looks "more simian than human" and is "part of a generation that has confused sputum with art and involuntary reflex actions with emotion."^[2] After reading the article, Flynn was furious and wrote the song as a "fuck you" to Grim and a tribute to Dimebag. He posted a message on the band's message board soon after the event describing his friendship with Dimebag and praising the efforts of the other three men who died, Nathan Bray attempted to perform CPR on Dimebag, Erin "Stoney" Halk, Jeffrey "Mayhem" Thompson and officer James Niggemeyer, who killed Gale.^[3] Image File history File links Cquote1. ... Image File history File links Cquote2. ... This article belongs in one or more categories. ... Dimebag Darrell Lance Abbott (August 20, 1966 – December 8, 2004) (also credited as Diamond Darrell) was the lead guitarist in the heavy metal bands Pantera and Damageplan. ... Damageplan was a heavy metal band, showcasing the Groove Metal sound that was demonstrated by Vinnie Paul and Dimebag Darrell Abbott while playing in Pantera, most notably on the Vulgar Display of Power album. ... is the 342nd day of the year (343rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Nathan Gale (September 11, 1979 â€“ December 8, 2004) was a native of Marysville, Ohio, USA, who was killed by a police officer after he murdered several people at a concert, including heavy metal guitarist Dimebag Darrell Abbott. ... Families Cebidae Aotidae Pitheciidae Atelidae Cercopithecidae Hylobatidae Hominidae The simians (infraorder Simiiformes) are the higher primates very common to most people: the monkeys and the apes, including humans. ... For other meanings of CPR, see CPR (disambiguation). ...

The songs "Clenching The Fists of Dissent," "A Farewell To Arms" and "Halo" deal with politics, the war in Iraq and organized religion. The band wrote the lyrics about the Iraq war after conducting research and found that "a lot of stuff does not add up", according to Flynn, which angered him and caused the band to write about it. The band's debut album, Burn My Eyes had songs such as "A Thousand Lies" deal with the Gulf War. "Now I Lay Thee Down" features a Romeo and Juliet-esque love story, "Slanderous" deals with hate that still exists throughout society and "Wolves," addresses the band's competitive 'winner take all’ spirit'.^[4] For other uses, see Iraq war (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Iraq war (disambiguation). ...

Critical reception

The Blackening was met with generally positive critical reviews. Blabbermouth.net reviewer Don Kaye, awarded the album an almost perfect score of 9.5, saying The Blackening is "one of the purest, finest, most powerful expressions of modern heavy metal released." Kaye praised the guitar work of Flynn and Demmel on the tracks "Beautiful Mourning" and "Aesthetics of Hate", and thought all members surpassed their musical ability in an intense and dynamic way.^[5] Thom Jurek of All Music Guide described the album as "an over the top rage and pummelfest with all the qualities that earned the group its enormous fan base by touring and recording" praising the songs "Beautiful Mourning," "Halo," and "Now I Lay Thee Down."^[6] Blabbermouth. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music, owned by All Media Guide. ...

Rock Sound magazine reviewer Eleanor Goodman awarded the album a 9, commenting that the first two minutes of the opening song, "Clenching The Fists Of Dissent", is "a full-on old-skool thrash attack, that hammers the nail into Supercharger's coffin forever", as Goodman thought Supercharger was the band's crisis point. Goodman praised the album's smooth production and noted Flynn's anger had remained strong after 15 years.^[7] J.D. Considine of Blender compared the album to Metallica's ...And Justice for All, but felt the lyrics were "cribbed from comic books".^[8] At the fifth annual Metal Hammer Golden Gods awards, The Blackening won "Best Album".^[9] Rock Sound magazine launched in the UK in 1999 and has built up a great reputation for championing new music. ... Supercharger is the fourth album by heavy metal band, Machine Head. ... Blender is an American magazine that bills itself as the ultimate guide to music and more. ... Metallica is a Grammy Award-winning American heavy metal/thrash metal band formed in 1981[1] and has become one of the most commercially successful musical acts of recent decades. ... ...And Justice for All is American heavy metal band Metallicas fourth studio album released August 25, 1988, by Elektra Records. ...

Rolling Stone reviewer Andy Greene and James Jam of NME responded to the album negatively. Greene was negative towards the length of songs running over nine minutes and thought "A Farewell to Arms" was a "creepy ten-minute opus that sounds like three Load-era Metallica outtakes strung together." However, Greene was pleased with the band returning to its thrash-metal roots.^[10] Jam described the album as "no return to form" and that it made you want to "dig out their 1994 debut album, Burn My Eyes."^[11] This article is about the magazine. ... For other uses, see NME (disambiguation). ... Load is the sixth album by American heavy metal band Metallica, released in June 1996. ...

Chart performance

The Blackening was leaked onto the Internet two weeks prior to its release date by an American journalist, who received an advanced copy. Demmel though it created an "awesome" pre-buzz, as did Flynn who thought the buzz was nothing like the band had before and that "there’s internet street buzz vs. record company hype and if they hype matches up to the street buzz, then you’re seeing a lot of bands selling a lot of records in the first week."^[12] The Blackening became Machine Head's highest charting entry in the United States where it entered the Top Rock albums at No. 9, and the Billboard 200 at No. 54, selling just under 15,000 copies in its week of debut. This improved on the band's previous 2004 release, Through the Ashes of Empires, which sold 12,000 in its first week and entered the Billboard 200 at No. 88.^[13] Despite its debut, The Blackening fell to 171 the following week and dropped out of the Billboard chart in its third week.^[14] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. ...

The album entered the German and Belgium charts at No.12, No. 14 in Australia, No. 16 in the United Kingdom and No. 19 in Sweden. Charting positions below No. 20 included Ireland at No. 23, No.29 in the Netherlands, No. 34 in France and No. 55 in Italy.^[13] The Blackening sold more copies in two weeks than Through The Ashes Of Empires sold in three years.^[15]

Cover art and special edition

The artwork for The Blackening was designed by longtime Machine Head collaborator Paul Brown. The artwork was based on a metal carving in the 1500's, which were used to scare people into going to Hell and for propaganda purposes. It features a skeleton on a throne that is standing 'on top of the world' and the words 'The mirrovr which flatters not.' These elements were included as Flynn thought "this whole record is like holding up a mirror to ourselves. It's talking about things that are going on now, but it's not necessarily specific to this time."^[16]

Two special editions of The Blackening were released in Europe for a limited time. A two-LP gatefold vinyl and a CD + DVD two-disc special edition released in a silver foil-enhanced slipcase. The two-disc special edition featured a cover-version of the Metallica song "Battery", a video entitled The Making of The Blackening and a 2006 tour documentary entitled Sounds of the Underground Tour Diary.^[17] A gatefold cover or gatefold LP is a form of packaging for LP records which was popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. ... Chemical structure of the vinyl functional group. ... Battery is the opening track of Metallicas 1986 album Master of Puppets. ...

Track listing

All lyrics written by Flynn, except where noted. All music by Flynn/Demmel accept where noted. This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Guitarist for Machine Head (band). ...

Clenching the Fists of Dissent is the first track on Machine Heads sixth studio album The Blackening, released in 2007. ... Dave McClain is the drummer of Machine Head. ... Aesthetics of Hate is a song by heavy metal band Machine Head. ... Co-founder, bassist and backup vocalist of Machine Head (band) ... Battery is the opening track of Metallicas 1986 album Master of Puppets. ... Metallica is a Grammy Award-winning American heavy metal/thrash metal band formed in 1981[1] and has become one of the most commercially successful musical acts of recent decades. ...

References

Categories: 2007 albums | Machine Head albums | Roadrunner Records albums Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 314th day of the year (315th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... MTV ( acronym for Music Television) is a cable television network which was originally devoted to music videos, especially popular rock music. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 233rd day of the year (234th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 216th day of the year (217th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 354th day of the year (355th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 216th day of the year (217th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 107th day of the year (108th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 163rd day of the year (164th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 239th day of the year (240th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 80th day of the year (81st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 113th day of the year (114th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 288th day of the year (289th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 214th day of the year (215th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 215th day of the year (216th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 12th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 229th day of the year (230th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 169th day of the year (170th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 229th day of the year (230th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the band. ... Image:Robb Flynn. ... Co-founder, bassist and backup vocalist of Machine Head (band) ... For the University of Hawaii System president, see David McClain (president). ... Guitarist for Machine Head (band). ... Chris Kontos in the music video for Davidian This article is about the drummer Chris Kontos; for the Ice hockey player, see Chris Kontos (ice hockey player). ... Logan Mader performs with Machine Head at the Dynamo Festival in 1995 Logan Mader (born in 1970 in Canada) is a guitarist, best known as a former member of the heavy metal bands Machine Head and Soulfly. ... Ahrue Luster is the current lead guitarist of Ill NiÃ±o and former Machine Head guitar player. ... This article is about the band. ... The Burn My Eyes album cover The discography for the American heavy metal band Machine Head. ... Burn My Eyes is the debut album by Oakland groove metal band Machine Head. ... The More Things Change is the second album by Oakland based heavy metal band Machine Head. ... The Burning Red is the third album by heavy metal band, Machine Head. ... Supercharger is the fourth album by heavy metal band, Machine Head. ... Through the Ashes of Empires is the fifth studio album by Oakland-based heavy metal band Machine Head. ... Hellalive is a live album by Oakland based heavy metal band Machine Head. ... Elegies is a live DVD recorded at the Brixton Academy in London, England. ... Old is a song recorded by American heavy metal band Machine Head. ... Davidian is a single and the opening song on US metal band Machine Heads debut album Burn My Eyes, released in 1994; it is perhaps their most widely-known song. ... Ten Ton Hammer is the first track on the heavy metal band Machine Heads second album as well as being the first song released from the album. ... Take My Scars is a single by American heavy metal band Machine Head. ... From This Day is a single by American heavy metal band Machine Head. ... Year of the Dragon is a single by American heavy metal band Machine Head. ... Silver (Take My Hand) is a promo single by American heavy metal band Machine Head. ... Crashing Around You is a single by American heavy metal band Machine Head. ... An editor has expressed a concern that the subject of the article does not satisfy the notability guideline for Music. ... Days Turn Blue to Gray is a single by American heavy metal band Machine Head. ... Now I Lay Thee Down is a promo single for the thrash metal band Machine Heads newest album The Blackening. So far this is the only single released from the new album. ... Aesthetics of Hate is a song by heavy metal band Machine Head. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ...

Contents

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