Pre-order now 'Mosaic', the new album from Theocracy

Pethead wrote:Another truth bomb: 

“I Am” is Theocracy’s most overrated song. Good, but not as great as people say. The best songs on AtWB are “Master Storyteller,” “Hide in the Fairytale,” and “Altar to the Unknown God.”

100% agreed! I've expressed my lyrical gripes with I Am, but musically I don't think it is as good as the other three you listed.

I'm not sure if I'm gonna order this one anytime soon. Sure it will probably end up high if not on #1 on my year's list but I don't want to take such an obvious option for a birthday present away from my family

I feel fairly confident naming Mosaic my Christian AotY.

I think every year a Theocracy album is released, it’s pretty much a shoe-in for Christian metal AotY. Although this year Adorned Graves’ album will definitely be a strong contender for me, I still expect Theocracy to come out on top

Pethead wrote:I feel fairly confident naming Mosaic my Christian AotY.

That's significant, considering you had Wytch Hazel, Lovebites and Delain in the running so far!

Sacrificium still leads but Mosaic will definitely be top five, maybe three.

My AotY for secular is still Rexoria. For Christian it’s Theocracy.

Sacrificium is really good. I just prefer melodic metal a bit over death metal generally.

I’ve gone through the new album and it’s just not my thing. The two singles they’ve released so far, are by far the best on the album. Matt’s moving away from the immediately accessible hooks and song structures to more of a Dream Theater approach where the music keeps going all over the place. A song ends, and I have no idea what I just listened to.

Really? I like it, little bit heavier overall than anything since MoS and still has hooks. Weakness is ending with two really long songs, kind of kills the buzz but they're not bad songs.

First listen through right now!!!!!!!!!!

Pethead, where can we find your review of it?

I’m not sure, honestly. Hopefully KaramKaram can direct us.


Long story short: it good.

Started listening to it and loving it so far. Looks like they’re embracing their prog side again, which they had kind of gotten away from in Ghost Ship

I think I’ve concluded “Liar, Fool, or Messiah” is the best song on the album. Great lyrics, catchy chorus, thrashy riffs, proggy time signatures and riffs in the bridge. It’s the whole package in 7 minutes.

The only musical moment I’m not sure about is the chorus of “Anonymous.” It’s got a fine hook and the song itself is great, but the chorus doesn’t quite fit as well with the rest of the song as the others.

Alright, the moment of truth and controversy:

1. As the World Bleeds
2. Mirror of Souls
3. Mosaic
4. Ghost Ship
5. Theocracy (debut album)

I will not recant! 

1. Ghost Ship
2. Mirror of Souls
3. Mosaic

Gap


4. As the World Bleeds
5. Theocracy

Pethead wrote:1. Ghost Ship
2. Mirror of Souls
3. Mosaic

Gap


4. As the World Bleeds
5. Theocracy

All said and done, we agree on 3/5! That's pretty good 

Pethead wrote:I’m not sure, honestly. Hopefully KaramKaram can direct us.


Long story short: it good.

Here's the review, it was published today:

https://lotsofmuzik.com/theocracy-mosaic-album-review-by-curtis-j-dupree/

Follower of Jesus wrote:I’ve gone through the new album and it’s just not my thing. The two singles they’ve released so far, are by far the best on the album.  Matt’s moving away from the immediately accessible hooks and song structures to more of a Dream Theater approach where the music keeps going all over the place. A song ends, and I have no idea what I just listened to.

That is the problem I have with a lot of Theocracy songs that are super long.  There are so many parts that I have no idea if I am still listening to the same song.  I zone out.  I am the same way with the newest Trytan album.  If I am having to seriously focus on all the parts of a song just to get through it, then I am going to mentally hit the skip button and will stop listening to the album altogether.

Just finished my first listen. Loved it. I don't think it will dethrone Mirror of Souls as my favorite Theocracy album, but this one might get second place. (Need to listen to it more times in order to know for sure.)

Flicker is such a killer opener. What an amazing song! It is definitely my favorite track on this album. Other standouts for me were Sinsidious, The Sixth Great Extinction, and Deified.

I think the weakest track was The Greatest Hope. I like that they included a soft song (and I'm glad it's also the shortest song on the album), but there is a very soft part in the middle of it and Matt's voice just didn't really work for it imo. Maybe he should have sung an octave deeper for that. I thought that Mosaic, the title track, was actually a little weak compared to the rest of the album. Red Sea was good for what it is, but it is definitely still too long, and I was disinterested in about the last five minutes of it. But there is some good stuff in there for sure.

I've listened through a couple times and though I haven't had a full concentrated listen through each and every song (lyrics in hand, 100% concentration) I'm very much enjoying this. Always loved the more "muscular" riffing Theocracy has and there is an abundance of it here, perhaps moreso than any other album. I think the songs seem pretty catchy actually, most of them instantly grabbing my attention with either riffs or melodies. Thankfully Mosaic, the title track, sounds better in the context of the album. I wasn't thrilled with it as a single. The album overall has a really good flow. The album isn't top or bottom heavy either. It may be their most balanced release. It's a solid listen.

On the musical end, I'm pleasantly surprised by Ernie's drum work here. I always liked Shawn Benson's playing and this is actually Ernie's first full length though he joined right around Ghost Ship's release. Ernie is pretty nimble and has some great speedy fills even in the thrashiest moments. Taylor's solos are good. I always found Val's work to be outstanding, even the highlight of many songs. I'd listen just for the solos. Taylor's playing while equally skilled isn't standing out quite the same. I'm hoping added will listens will help there. Everyone else sounds stellar as expected and the production isn't as flat as Ghost Ship. I thought As The World Lies Bleeding had their best production and this is back to that standard.

Not going to imagine how this will rank but safe to say, I don't agree with most of your album rankings here anyway. 

Oh I also forgot to mention, ending Red Sea with a fade out was a really bad choice imo. When your last song is a 19 minute epic, you can't just let it fade away! Give me a dramatic ending!

I think Red Sea is a great song, but Mirror of Souls is still better.

I was able to listen to most of the album once this morning, and while my overall first impression is very good I agree that the long songs here aren’t quite on the same level as some of Theocracy’s other long songs, especially Mirror of Souls. I actually think Flicker was my favorite based on that first impression, which would be the first time a “short” song was my favorite on a Theo album. I will listen to the whole thing again tonight to get a better feel for it.

Flicker is an amazing opener.