Between the Buried and Me "Colors"

Despite retiring from the hobby, I still peruse a variety of web-zines and, for the most part, it seems like they're slinging heaps of praise at Between the Buried and Me's fourth (excluding their 2006 covers record, The Anatomy Of) full length, Colors. While it's easy to get caught up in the hype and simply like the record because so many people are (perhaps shortsightedly) naming it the best metal record of 2007, Colors really does merit accolades.

Five records in, Between the Buried and Me has become one of the few metal bands you can count on to be one (or two, or 50) big step ahead of the crowd. The group's collective technical skill alone pits them in a hard-to-reach, upper echelon of heavy bands, but they also have a creative songwriting prowess and sense of heart that completely rounds out their efforts. While other groups re-purpose 2005's stunning Alaska, Between the Buried and Me is pushing ahead. But not forgetting their longtime fans.

Colors showcases, dare I say, a more "grown-up" Between the Buried and Me. The general formula for their past records is still present -- complex, tempo-shifting drumming lays the foundation for crazily technical guitar riffs (flashy arpeggios included), distinguished bass parts and pained screams, and poignant, touching melodies often interject the metallic chaos. But, as hinted at on The Anatomy Of, the band's progressive tones -- a la King Crimson and Pink Floyd -- have really come around, and Colors gracefully morphs between grinding metal and beautiful, colorful progressive rock throughout it's more than hour-long length.

With three of the eight songs easily topping 10 minutes, the band has lots of room to indulge themselves -- and sometimes they do -- but Colors rarely falls into filler material and never bores. There's always some sort of texture or, at the least, lead guitarist Paul Waggoner's highly impressive playing to envelope listeners. There's even a fun and friendly hoedown at the end of "Ants of the Sky," several Mike Patton-influenced vocalizations, Latin and polka tinges, tribal rhythms and trippy synths. Somehow, the odds and ends are all comfortably nestled in a bed of metal, sounding like they naturally belong.

A lot of the bands that I loved even five years ago have become a slightly embarrassing figment of my memory, but I'm still proud to love Between the Buried and Me. The way the band composes songs, evokes emotion and even paces -- each song seamlessly blends into the next -- their music is so far above average that I'm stunned with each listen. You know, now that I've gotten this on paper (or screen, whatever), I'm just about ready to call this the best metal record of 2007. Fuck it. Best metal record of 2007. So far.

A snippet of the refined face shredding that is Colors: Between the Buried and Me - Ants of the Sky

Seriously, get this.