Machine Head

The Burning Red (Roadrunner)
by Tim Den

Not surprisingly, the new album from Machine Head isn’t surprising. Like all the metal bands that just discovered it’s much cool to write about “the streets” and have “phat breakdowns,” Machine Head is (and has been since their last effort, The More Things Change…) a band who only knows how to bore the listener to death with a repetition of riffs and beats that sound exactly alike. No attempt at discovering music beyond the realms of D-tuned guitars and cheesy lyrics (“Desire to Fire?” “Nothing Left?” “The Blood, the Sweat, the Tears?” My little nephew must have made a fortune writing lyrics for these guys), The Burning Red (the title itself screams “9th grader who just discovered Snapcase”) is a lame excuse for heavy music. Just because you grooved a little slower or rapped a little more than usual doesn’t mean you’ve redefined the genre (as the bio would have us believe).

In fact, besides the brilliant debut Burn My Eyes (which retained the best of flavor, depth, speed, and melody), Machine Head has done nothing for metal but to popularize the “lowest common denominator” syndrome. Play slow, scream, use one chord, repeat. Make sure the meatheads can beat the shit out of kids to it and you’re all set. The outcome? Immense popularity. Gee, I wonder why… Maybe because any idiot with a blind eye to actual songwriting can nod to it. And good thing for Machine Head there are plenty of idiots out there with money to burn. As they scramble toward The Burning Red (and Brittany Spears, the Backstreet Boys, and Limp Bizkit), I hope the abundance of stupidity in the air solidifies heavy enough to crush the life out of the deserving.
(536 Broadway 4th Fl. New York, NY 10012)