NEED – Siamese God

The sophomore album Siamese God from the Greek multifaceted Metallers of Need has finally earned a worldwide release (originally released in early 2010 in Greece only). Need formed in 2004 and released their debut album in 2006. In the wake of that release they shared stages with bands like Candlemass, Jon Oliva’s Pain, Threshold, and Deadsoul Tribe.

When you first listen to Siamese God, the band sounds a bit confused as the songs have a wide span between emotional Progressive Metal and really aggressive Groove Metal with growling vocals… it’s difficult to get a grasp on what they want to accomplish. There’s simply so much going on and the merging of so many subgenres can be a bit confusing. Then when you listen to it again, the songs seem more thoroughly composed and it’s obvious that there’s no happenstance here. There’s a sort of Nevermore-ish feel mixed with the vocals of Communic and Machine Head in these songs at times, but there’s a lot more to it than that. “Flesh Machines” is a good example… the sound is pretty raw and authentic and far from polished.

The highlights of Siamese God are many. Already mentioned “Flesh Machines” is one of them. The song has an intense energy all the way and the vocal performance here is probably the best on the album. The title track has many different parts; some are heavy and technical while others are calmer with an addition of clean guitars and smooth transitions. This one also has a great guitar solo courtesy of Ravaya. “Inbetween” has a more modern approach and could very well be a single hitting the charts. The diversity of Need’s music is nothing short of stunning, and is simply enjoyable. The songs are very dark and riff-based, and can best be described as Heavy/Groove Metal mixed with elements of Progressive Metal — not in the sense that the songs are long, but because the riffs are complex and contain lots of odd-metered time structures.

Siamese God is a great album, but it can take some time to realize how great it is. If you’re into diversity in Metal, Metal that’s a bit experimental too, and if you like music that you have to listen to a few times to get a grasp on it, then this might be right up your alley.

Lineup: Jon V (vocals), Ravaya (guitars), K. K. (bass), Pete (drums)

Tracklist: Rainy Pieces of Hell / Soon / Lie Before You Sleep / Flesh Machines / Siamese God / Inbetween / War/ning / C.M.R. / The Lesson