Mind Equals Blown

Pierce the Veil‘s highly anticipated album Selfish Machines has been on everyone’s mind since word got out via Twitter that they were in the recording studio. Excitement grew as fans everywhere glued their ears to PTV’s Myspace page for song sneak-previews. Now, it is finally here. Selfish Machines is out and it is ‘every man for himself’ to get a copy.

Selfish Machines begins with the song “Besitos” (Spanish for ‘kisses’) which immediately hooks you in with a fast-paced drum line that continues into a sweet guitar riff. Vic’s notorious vocals commence and immediately swallowed my heart  amiably. The effects added to the vocals work beautifully and compliment the song more than they hurt it. Other than the captivating vocal work, the synth string in this song is something to take note of. All-together this was a great song to introduce the album to the anxious PTV listener.

I’m going to skip ahead to track number four, “Caraphernelia”. Hardcore rarely finds its way into PTV songs, but Jeremy Mckinnon’s addition to “Caraphernelia” sets off Vic’s high vocals incredibly. Focusing more on the technical side of things, there is a raw guitar line that transitions into a nice acoustic section. PTV really knows what they’re doing on Selfish Machines by mixing some surprises into the songs that will keep the fans and new listeners’ attention.

“Fast Times At Clairemont High” follows “Caraphernelia”. This song will drag you in as soon as you press play. The intro is a distorted vocal invitation that says [I was saving myself for you]. I love this song. I’m going to assume that the PTV fangirls are freaking out as we speak. The guitars are turned down a lot in this song making room for the vocal effects and fancy piano breaks. The song ends just as unexpectedly as it begins.

I could break down every detail about each song on this album, but I really don’t want to spoil it for you! The little surprises that PTV gifts to their listeners is worth finding out for yourself. I will tell you that Selfish Machines is mixed really well and will not bore you for a second.

However, there is one thing to discuss. Auto-Tune. Yes. The dreaded program makes a cameo on the song “Million Dollar Houses (The Painter). Though I was disgruntled at first, I have come to embrace it. Vic’s voice is so pure and beautiful by itself, you’d think they wouldn’t dare Auto-Tune it? Well, they did. And it’s a diminutive amount, I swear. It works with the song, though I think they could have gone without it. My point here is that I don’t hate it, but it seems to be a little unnecessary. Ah, well. All the cool kids are doing it, right?

The last song “The Sky Under the Sea” is a great ending to Selfish Machines. I love the title, it reminds me of Isles and Glaciers. The intense guitar line begins and sets somewhat of an epic “out with a bang” feeling. I absolutely adore the screaming in this track. Kudos, Vic! The chorus is strong and I JUST LOVE GANG VOCALS. I’m very impressed with the China symbols and drums. The outro will literally leave you with chills. The thing about Pierce the Veil is that they never stop at ‘just ok’, they go beyond to not only meet the expectations of their fans, but completely flabbergast them.

I encourage you to spend the money and get Selfish Machines. Vic, Mike, Jaime, and Tony have done a fantastic job and they truly deserve your support. This is easily one of the best albums of 2010. The Deluxe Edition is available on iTunes and features “She Makes Dirty Words Sound Pretty” with Jonny Craig, and a couple other extras that you will just have to discover yourself!

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