Today’s review was hinted at all the way back in 2015. Well, not exactly hinted at. More like alluded to. Though I had missed the exact day, this month marks the 20th anniversary of Devin Townsend’s last 90s release, Infinity (October 21st is when it came out). Quite possibly the most artistic of his 90s output, it came out at a time where HevyDevy overcame personal issues, and really embraced his inner mad Canadian artist. Infinity is the album that planted the seeds of curiosity in me before things bloomed a few records down the line (See my Epicloud review here for details), so let’s not waste anymore time shall we? This is my review for Devin Townsend’s 1998 classic, Infinity. Let’s begin!
Background
Taken from HevyDevy’s website:
“I remember once I had finished Ocean Machine and City, the idea of duality became a big thing for me. I began to find myself fascinated by the concepts of ‘this and that’ and ‘yin and yang’ (or whatever metaphors supported that idea). I realized that the things that were motivating me were (in hindsight) a relatively common ‘coming-of-age’ type of artistic view. I found myself engaging in drugs and relationships that were unhealthy, yet playing into the whole metaphoric nature of that period to the point where my whole world resonated with a very deluded sense of self importance that ultimately had much invested in the music itself. I felt a very arrogantly gratifying sense of martyrdom in ‘sleeping on the studio floor’, feeling ‘persecuted’, and ultimately winding myself up to believe that what I was doing was of some sort of great significance. At the time it was very romantic, but in hindsight, it was very obviously engagement in chemicals and drugs that I was unfamiliar with. These experiences threw me into a psychological tailspin that resulted in a chaotic, dense, (at times glorious), but mostly very confused statement. It was done on ADAT in my friends basement, and the recording was unfortunately a self-imposed hellish mess. Again, hindsight is 20/20 and currently it’s much easier to recognize what is legitimate drama from artistic gratification. At the time, I believed it was the last record I would ever make. Strangely, I feel that about most records I’ve done. Ultimately, Infinity is one of the most important records I feel I’ve been involved with, and it was a rewarding time for my process.”
Basic Description
A mess. A beautiful, glorious, odd, artistic, mind-altering, Canadian mess.
That’s not exactly an insult. I kind of alluded to this in my review for the EP of this album (Which you can read here), and I still stand by it today. It’s definitely disorganized, but I’ll get into that later. At the same time, Devin really gave it his all with Infinity. Some artists create dark masterpieces when dealing with advertising, but with HevyDevy he creates really unique music when going through adversity. In this case, it was coming out of a mental hospital after discovering he had Bipolar Disorder, and during his time there, him & his doctor’s came to the conclusion that his disorder is what led to his music being so unique. Devin grabbed his disorder by the balls, harnessed it’s power, and released the album you see before you.
Best Track
Also like I hinted in the EP review, Christeen is the best track of Infinity. Compared to virtually everything else, this is the most normal sounding thing on the album. There’s a little keyboarding used in the song, but everything else in the song is pure guitar & drums. Devin’s vocal work is actually the most versatile thing on Christeen: he knows when to go high & never lose clarity, he knows when to stay low but not at a whisper, and it’s seamless all around.
Christeen
The 2nd best track on Infinity has to go to the weirdly titled track Noisy Pink Bubbles. The concluding song to the base version of Infinity, it also is the only other track to have some aspect of normality to it. Not quite as much as Christeen however, as Devin definitely goes in a more weirder direction. There’s an odder style of guitarwork, the drumming seems disjointed at times, there’s keyboarding that just feels weird and HevyDevy’s singing gets loud, but it feels soft at the same time. Despite this weirdness, it somehow comes out normal, and never truly delves into the oddness of the rest of the album (More on that in a moment). A strange way to conclude Infinity, but an oddly fitting way at the same time.
Noisy Pink Bubbles
Worst Track
Ants is the only song on Infinity I’m not fond of. To give Devin credit, he really does manage to create the activity of an ant-hive & it’s denizens with frightening accuracy, and I actually commend him for that. At the same time, I consider this the most infuriating thing he’s ever made. Despite it playing for just 2 minutes, it felt like it went on for longer than that, and overall just came across as incredibly obnoxious. If there was 1 track on Infinity that is skippable, it would be this one.
Ants
Apart from that, the only other fault with Infinity is just how messy the album feels. Not sounds mind you, as everything apart from the previously mentioned song sound fantastic. All of the songs transition into one another with ease, but at the same time the tracks don’t come across like a cohesive whole. For a guy that had things clicked in his head while inside a mental hospital, this complete set of music seems like the exact opposite. The entirety of Infinity comes across like a man slipping further into a damaged mind, rather than a ascension into health.
Other
If you’re curious about listening to this album, check out the link below:
Infinity
Overall Impression & Rating
Infinity is an album that’s all sorts of things. High, low, deep, silly, philosophical, stupid, you name it. It’s also one of the strongest releases of Heavy Metal in the 90s, and is yet another feather in Devin Townsend’s impressive plumage. It’s downright bizarre, but it’s also incredibly artistic while being quite metal at the same time. If you didn’t listen to anything else from HevyDevy’s 90s library, this is the one you can’t skip.
Infinity gets a 9 out of 10. It’s gets a 10 out of 10 on some days, but only when I manage to focus.
And that was a look at HevyDevy’s concluding album of the 90s, Infinity. Again, it’s a confusing mess of an album, but the craftsmanship behind it turns it into an artistically weird whole that’s pleasing to listen to. With that out of the way, there’s still a few days before All Hallows Eve. Seen you all then!
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