Mudvayne

Lost And Found (Epic)
by Martin Popoff

From the graphics and band look (and regular names) on down through the music, Lost And Found marks a Mudvayne less exotic and more regular rockin’ than the band that cooked up The End of All Things to Come. With Slipknot, Mudvayne are survivors in nü metal, this record entering the Billboard charts at an astounding #2. Personally, I liked the guys more as whack explorers of proggy nü metal possibility, even though there’s still a bunch of that here, as one digs deeper.

So yes, along with thrashy vocals and the band’s circular, down-tuned riffs and challenging rhythms, there’s radio-ripped song discipline. The guys reach out with melodies, clean vocals, pregnant pauses and accessible punch, all while dishing multiple mouthfuls of words about depression, anger, anguish, and stress seven ways to doomsday. Bass virtuoso Ryan Martinie is perhaps the central figure in this controlled, churning swirl, his clacky high-register work protecting the band’s moderate to high level of distinction as the NWOUSHM threatens to usurp Mudvayne’s moshpitted Dr. Phil sermons.
(www.mudvayne.com)