We all know who Devin Townsend is, right? Didn't think so. Check out
HevyDevy.com for more info on him, though; but for now I'll just let it be
pretty basic. At the age of 19, Mr. Townsend began singing for rock/metal
guitarist Steve Vai. Either he was kicked out of the band or voluntary left,
because he isn't in the band anymore. After leaving, he started a band called
Strapping Young Lad, which is industrial death, kind of in the sense of Fear
Factory but with ten times more originality and creativity. A year later, he
released an album under the project name Ocean Machine, but it was Devin that
did everything on it.

Long story short, he's done a lot of stuff with a lot of different bands and
projects. Terria, which is (as of the review's date) his newest album with his
solo project. As you'd guess from the title Terria, that's exactly what this
album is. Earth. Songs are pretty long, even for a Townsend project. They need
to be, though. The album does so many things with a guitar that you've never
heard; Devin Townsend says one mistake his fans make is thinking that his
guitars are actually keyboard effects. He has a very unique playing style. Not
only that, but of course his songwriting is unique.

Since none of his two albums sound the same, finding a comparison for this is
hard. It's industrial metal (like Fear Factory or Strapping Young Lad) with a
lot more melody and atmosphere. The first two tracks on the album are kind of
boring (hence 9/10 instead of 10/10) but after that it actually takes everything
he has and puts it together. This album isn't heavy, it isn't light. It's not
black, death, thrash, or classic metal. If you had to label it as anything, it
would probably be industrial metal. Labelling it isn't fair, though, you've got
to hear the album for yourself to judge it. That's something I suggest you do.