Walk The Sky Reaction Thread

[chtimixeur]

I've listened to it once and I want to say this: if The Last Hero left me disappointed, but it still had 6 songs that I can listen and enjoy, this album made me feel nothing (except Dying Light, it's a legit great song and the fact that Mark and Myles made it together tells a lot). For me, this record doesn't live up to any of their previous albums and feels passionless and uninspired. Some people call it a new direction, but for me it's a stagnation at best.

There are some interesting riffs and harmonies here and there, but they are diluted with the most basic and boring post-grunge/modern rock sounds and AB's own tropes

I can relate to your post, and just like you, I felt nothing during the first spin of the new songs.
The only thing I could think about was how loud and distorted the guitars sounded on the heavier parts (especially on Native Son and Godspeed).

Fortunately, things have improved with each new spin, and I'm confident I'll end up liking most of the songs in a few days.
Dying Light has now become one oif my favourite tunes of theirs, and Mark's solo is incredible.
Right now, some of my favourite parts are Indoctrination's creeping intro with sithar (?) and the note Myles reaches later at 4:00. Goosebump material!
I enjoy most of the tracks, except for two of them (Clear Horizon and Godspeed), but I'm not giving up on them...
I also don't understand why Forever Falling gets such a positive reaction. It's alright, but I'm not hearing anything amazing in it. Mark's vocals are buried in the mix compared to Myles' in the other songs, but I still noticed his vocals were similar to Brett Hinds's from Mastodon at the beginning of the verses.

[The Dissident]

Picking up my copy of WTS after class this afternoon! Very excited will post my review once I listen to it.

[One Drew Remains]

Yeah. I've heard the whole album out of context on my phone. Will post my thoughts probably tomorrow.

[Crumbso]

To my ears, it isn't as loud as TLH. However, I'm still in the honeymoon phase, so we will see how I feel after a few listens. TLH can be exhausting to listen all the way through. Particularly songs like This Side of Fate, which has a lot going on. I still love the hell out of that song, but I have to turn it down a little because it's so loud.
I don't get that with any of the songs on Walk The Sky.

Not loud, but the mix is muddy as heck. No instrument comes out clear. Worse than TLH, which I love. What I would do for Remixes of both these albums. Loud doesn't bother me as much as it does everyone else (unless there is unlistenable clipping of course), but bad muddy mushy cramped mixes just kill it. How can a band like AB not have a good mix when Pretty Maids can, and Eclipse, and H.E.A.T, and Harem Scarem, etc....makes no sense. They need...NEED outside ears.

I'd love for them to release the multi-track stems like Periphery do. Then a less hot mix can be done with some of the more excessive overdubs could be stripped away.

[Jesterhead92]

only listened all the way through once, gonna need to do so a bunch to really cement how I feel about it. I don't think it touches BB/Fortress/ODR, but it could be about ABIII level, good themes, some great standout tracks amongst some duds. It 100% is way way way way better than TLH though and that's all I really wanted. It is, of nothing else, a good return to form. So far, I still pretty much like all of the pre-released tracks. WYR is still a banger, great start to the album after One Life. The Bitter End and Walking on The Sky are probably the standout tracks for me, least favorite track is probably Tear Us Apart. Like I said, though, still need to listen more.

[prslover]

Listened through it once so far , not nearly enough to give it a fair rating. But I can say this, there's not a song on there that is even a quarter as good as Pnuema from FI

[anguyen92]

Listened through it once so far , not nearly enough to give it a fair rating. But I can say this, there's not a song on there that is even a quarter as good as Pnuema from FI

I'm sorry, the what now? Is Pnuema the album and FI is the band or something? Not everyone here is in the know with that kind of stuff.

[prslover]

Listened through it once so far , not nearly enough to give it a fair rating. But I can say this, there's not a song on there that is even a quarter as good as Pnuema from FI

I'm sorry, the what now? Is Pnuema the album and FI is the band or something? Not everyone here is in the know with that kind of stuff.

Ok i'll play along, lets ignore the fact that Tool just put Rock and Roll back in the mainstream by knocking Taylor Swift down a peg. Breaking multiple records with their latest release Fear Inoculum. And i hope im not coming off as a tool fanboy because i am much more of an AB fanboy than Tool.
I think a lot of people around here have AB tunnel vision and get threatened should someone try to hold them up to the legends. But I do like to hold them up there because they are legends to us. They were, until Elvis became part of the band.

[CrowsOnAWire]

Listened through it once so far , not nearly enough to give it a fair rating. But I can say this, there's not a song on there that is even a quarter as good as Pnuema from FI

I'm sorry, the what now? Is Pnuema the album and FI is the band or something? Not everyone here is in the know with that kind of stuff.

He/she’s talking about Pneuma from Tool’s new album Fear Inoculum. However it’s comparing apples to oranges.

[Crumbso]

Listened through it once so far , not nearly enough to give it a fair rating. But I can say this, there's not a song on there that is even a quarter as good as Pnuema from FI

I'm sorry, the what now? Is Pnuema the album and FI is the band or something? Not everyone here is in the know with that kind of stuff.

He/she’s talking about Pneuma from Tool’s new album Fear Inoculum. However it’s comparing apples to oranges.

Eh. I found FI to be totally robotic and Tool by-the-numbers. This AB album has a palpable amount passion behind it, which might not be to my taste but definitely is why it's so polarising. Much love and much dislike.

[anguyen92]

Listened through it once so far , not nearly enough to give it a fair rating. But I can say this, there's not a song on there that is even a quarter as good as Pnuema from FI

I'm sorry, the what now? Is Pnuema the album and FI is the band or something? Not everyone here is in the know with that kind of stuff.

Ok i'll play along, lets ignore the fact that Tool just put Rock and Roll back in the mainstream by knocking Taylor Swift down a peg. Breaking multiple records with their latest release Fear Inoculum.

I'm actually glad you played along since I didn't know what Pnuema was referring to until I googled it and saw the name Tool and my brain just zoned out when I read the name Tool. I can't help it. I just can't care about them or their new album (heard it, didn't really feel much). Good for the people that waited a long time for this album and they are happy about it as the results are shown for themselves, but I don't really care if the album succeeds or fails or how it helps the Rock community in the mainstream and whatnot.

[Jesterhead92]

Fear Inoculum sucked. What a chore of an album

[prslover]

Listened through it once so far , not nearly enough to give it a fair rating. But I can say this, there's not a song on there that is even a quarter as good as Pnuema from FI

I'm sorry, the what now? Is Pnuema the album and FI is the band or something? Not everyone here is in the know with that kind of stuff.

Ok i'll play along, lets ignore the fact that Tool just put Rock and Roll back in the mainstream by knocking Taylor Swift down a peg. Breaking multiple records with their latest release Fear Inoculum.

I'm actually glad you played along since I didn't know what Pnuema was referring to until I googled it and saw the name Tool and my brain just zoned out when I read the name Tool. I can't help it. I just can't care about them or their new album. Good for the people that waited a long time for this album and they are happy about it as the results are shown for themselves, but I don't really care if the album succeeds or fails or how it helps the Rock community in the mainstream and whatnot.

Sounds like you have an open mind to new music. Or the attention span of a generation Z person.

[Crumbso]

Fear Inoculum sucked. What a chore of an album

Haha. The less diplomatic way of putting my thoughts into words.

[prslover]

Whatever , I didnt come to start a fight about Tool and AB. Although I think some of you are kinda weird for not embracing the only Rock band other than Metallica to be able to cause a ruckus in the music world that is saturated in commercial garbage. You guys are probably still thinking the radio will play AB at some point. You know what I did hear on the radio yesterday, Dirty Honey. Pretty good actually. So American radio is already playing Dirty Honey.

[anguyen92]

Whatever , I didnt come to start a fight about Tool and AB. Although I think some of you are kinda weird for not embracing the only Rock band other than Metallica to be able to cause a ruckus in the music world that is saturated in commercial garbage.

That's because I've been listening to some Jpop/Jrock around that period and find myself feeling more relaxed than I have ever been not really focusing more on the state of the music world. Also, I've gone to 20+ concerts this year listening to all kinds of bands, so I've mainly tuned out on what's happening in the mainstream world and I feel better for it.

[Crumbso]

Whatever , I didnt come to start a fight about Tool and AB. Although I think some of you are kinda weird for not embracing the only Rock band other than Metallica to be able to cause a ruckus in the music world that is saturated in commercial garbage. You guys are probably still thinking the radio will play AB at some point. You know what I did hear on the radio yesterday, Dirty Honey. Pretty good actually. So American radio is already playing Dirty Honey.

I'd embrace it if I liked it. I mean, I like Tool alot and I'm happy they did well out of it but it just wasn't for me.

I don't think that AB will ever be mainstream in any major way. Weirdly, I'm just glad they're not creatively treading water.

[Jesterhead92]

I don't really buy the whole "rock is real art and pop/rap/electronic/whatever is garbage" thing, not that that's explicitly what you said, but rock is not some fringe counter-culture thing just cause it's not at the very top echelon of the charts. There's plenty of rock music that's mainstream, corporate, soulless, derivative, etc. and there's plenty of pop and rap that's pushing boundaries and innovating. Just saying. Regardless, this is probably not the thread for this discussion, so I'll leave it there. Walk The Sky. Alter Bridge. Decent album. Had a good time listening to it.

[UninvitedZero]

Godspeed is fantastic and gives me sort of a Ghost of Days Gone By feel.
Take The Crown still jams.
I do hear something of a guitar solo buried in the mix of Indoctrination and wish it were louder!
Some of Mark and Myles' harmonies on Walking On The Sky give off heavy Mastodon vibes!

[CrowsOnAWire]

Godspeed is fantastic and gives me sort of a Ghost of Days Gone By feel.
Take The Crown still jams.
I do hear something of a guitar solo buried in the mix of Indoctrination and wish it were louder!
Some of Mark and Myles' harmonies on Walking On The Sky give off heavy Mastodon vibes!

Yep I keep finding myself listening to Godspeed over and over again. The melody and vocal delivery is exceptional and the little guitar solo is really good.