Review by Shadowdoom9 (Andi) for Dillinger Escape Plan, The - Irony Is a Dead Scene (2002)
I thought I've reviewed all The Dillinger Escape Plan albums, but I missed a special release where they collaborate with one of the most legendary vocalists in the music world. The band consisting of Ben Weinman (Guitar), Brian Benoit (Guitar), Liam Wilson (Bass) and Chris Pennie (Drums), plus former bassist Adam Doll on keyboards collaborated with the one and only Mike Patton (Faith No More, Mr. Bungle) for a killer mathcore EP!
While on the search for a suitable replacement for previous vocalist Dimitri Minakakis, The Dillinger Escape Plan came across Mike Patton who was touring with Mr. Bungle. He must've been such a big fan of TDEP's Calculating Infinity that he was interested in joining in some sort of record of theirs. Having been some time since their last album and this is THE Mike Patton, the band agreed and put their vocalist search on hold. It's pretty interesting that one of the craziest bands team up one of the craziest vocalists to create a super crazily awesome EP. If you thought the results would be much different than their usual material, Irony is a Dead Scene is an exception.
"Hollywood Squares" starts the chaos right at the press of the play button, with Patton screaming "GAME OVER! I WIN!! GAME OVER! YOU WIN!!!" The Intensity never stops and instead keeps twisting and turning through all this variety. As the fast pace speeds on, Patton shows off his astonishing vocals ranging from blood-curdling yelling and creepy whispering. What a great maniac! Things get quieter in the second half where Patton sounds closer to his more accessible time in Faith No More. There's still some more amazing creative talent! The furious extreme noisecore rages on once more as Patton snarls "We're Hollywood squares, going nowhere". After that amazing shocker, "Pig Latin" starts calm. First a slow haunting guitar riff plays, then keyboard joins in, followed by Patton's soft singing. It sounds accessible at first but you know it's gonna build up to more chaos. The heavier chorus as guitars explode into heaviness. Patton starts singing deep vocals that sound almost gibberish surrounded by squeals of "Chinga". The guitars get really chaotic as the chords get forcefully wrung out. That and Patton's chaotic squealing causes the guitar to sound like you're bending a pipe around its neck to strangle it. The intensity returns as Patton yells "Speaking Pig Latin, kiss me goodnight" as the band blows the roof off this dump. After a few strange beeps, the song then sounds like a lounge band with the lead vocalist being a psychotic murderer. Those deep lounge vocals work well there! Then it's back to the beginning with the first verse and chorus, except in the chorus, only "Chinga" remains, then ends with one more incomprehensible gibberish line. One of the best TDEP songs!
"When Good Dogs Do Bad Things" is much greater, one of my all-time favorites from this band! Everything's in the right place, and it would be a great song to perform live, though if they ever did, it would be with vocalist Greg Puciato. It begins with Patton yelling "I'm the best you've ever had!!" This song has the most intensity and variety in this EP. The riffs go all over the place in perfect sense. Pure genius!! After some strange gibbering, he starts chanting "mommy" similar to a Gregorian choir. It pauses a few times then his voice rises to screaming as if he was a little kid crying for his mommy. The riffs and vocal abilities get better as the song progresses. More screaming insanity! This song once again proves that Mike Patton is one of the best vocalists in the whole wide world amen. Then suddenly the wild intensity is interrupted by a sudden ambient section with good drumming and haunting vocals. Then it gets much cooler. The guitar sounds darker and more restrained as Patton sings some very low vocals. Then suddenly the crazy screams and mad guitars return again. Then it switches back to the low singing then back to the high screaming. The drums throughout those sections are amazing. Then the song fades out with a film reel, and you think it's all over. Then PSYCH!!! The song returns unexpectedly for one more heavy reprise, like an abrupt jump-scare! One of the most incredible songs by the band.
The final song is a cover of "Come to Daddy" by Aphex Twin. The original song by Aphex Twin might be weird, but a whole new weird dimension is opened by Dillinger. Patton's vocals sounds pretty odd there, sounding like an alien who's gagging and about to throw up the souls he ate, to fit the disturbing nature. It's not as impressive as other songs in this EP, but the drumming is pretty good. However, the guitar is just simple with a repetitive riff. There's a good midsection where they change the guitar line, and every time a new instrument or effect is played, another new one steps in as well. Patton does some pretty weird vocals here. After a strange trance section, it fades to a chilling piano outro. Probably the lowest point of the EP, but still awesome!
Irony is a Dead Scene is not an EP for the faint of heart. Even though it might seem surprisingly normal for a Dillinger EP, it's still a million light-years away from all that conventional radio sh*t. Dillinger truly has a chaotic insane sound of noise-mathcore. With this album, they seem to shine the spotlight further away from themselves onto Patton, the main star, though their musical creativity is still in this EP, hinting at what was to come next in Miss Machine. While not having the same level of insanity as Calculating Infinity, this EP takes and refines every aspect of that album. Dillinger had learnt some great tricks from this EP, and that's why Miss Machine is worth the wait!
Favorites: "Pig Latin", "When Good Dogs Do Bad Things"