Rants/Questions/Thoughts

In preparation for the new album, I have been re-listening to the entire discography from start to finish...

I must say, I keep falling in love with B2BX upon each re-visit. I feel like this was the last album that really stood on its own two feet. It's maintains a well balanced mixture of genres and topics, and keeps things original and experimental.

Listening to OIA again...I noticed the song 'Amerikan Beauty' is in fact referencing Sam Mendes 1999 film, American Beauty, in which the protagonist, Lester (Kevin Spacey) falls hopelessly in love with a teenage cheerleader. Notice the similarities between the film's plot, and MCUD's lyrical content? This is something I love about (hed) pe...There is SO much to discover reference wise when it comes to pop culture, not least when it comes to DJ Product's countless samples.

It was fantastic re-exploring (hed) pe's self titled album. This might be their strongest work. It is brave, experimental, dark and daring. It reminds of me of Limp Bizkit's Three Dollar Bill Ya'll release. B.C. absolutely slays it on those funk drums and is up there with David Silveria and John Otto.

On this point, I think it's safe to argue that (hed) pe aren't really (hed) pe anymore. The only original member of the band is Jahred, and I feel that as time has gone on, the original sound of (hed) pe that I loved so much, is distinctly lacking on the later releases...When David Silveria left KoRn, and when Wes Borland left Limp Bizkit, each band became like a watered down version of who they once were...I feel that (hed) pe shares similar thematic underpinnings.

Can someone please explain to me what in the fuck self-titled's 'Ground' is about? It baffles me that they chose this for their single? The Lynchian inspired music video (though I love it) makes things even more confusing. Rabbit holes, séances, and skate-parks. Lyrically and musically, I venture to say it is the strangest song they have ever released. It reminds of early Deftones..."Tie 'em to the brain, tie 'em to the brain, tie 'em to the bra-a-a-i-n!" What the absolute fuck!?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7K3Cj29fr5Y

Oh, and before I forget...This clip had me laughing my ass off! Remember when Jah got into a punch on with someone in the crowd over just such a thing...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btHiwiaYmfk

Honestly man, the first 3 albums(self-titled, Broke, & Blackout) are still the ones I love the most. While I still continue to support them, even I'll admit that the band has felt like a shell of its former self since "Only In Amerika", which was the first hed album that ever disappointed me. "Back 2 Base X" was disappointing at first, but it grew on me and to this day, I still consider it one of hed's best post-Jive albums, even if I do find the album to be lackluster compared to the first 3. Honestly, there have been many times that I've wanted to stop being a hed fan mainly due to lackluster quality of their music since OIA, but Jared is one of my favorite vocalists of all time and that's probably the main reason I've continued to support them.

American Beauty is actually one of my all-time favorite movies, never really noticed the connection until you brought it up. Also, "Chicken" samples City Of God, which is an amazing foreign film.

As for your comment on Korn & Limp Bizkit, I agree with you on Limp Bizkit, Borland is irreplaceable. Did you like "The Serenity Of Suffering"? I think that's easily Korn's best album since "Issues" and it doesn't even feature David on drums, I think Ray is a fine replacement.

Right on Chizase.

What do you think of New World Orphans? No good?

I think it's almost as good as B2BX in some ways, and is still one I return to quite a bit post-Jive.

I'd also like to know why Jared is one of your favourite vocalists. I'd agree he's awesome, but I'd like to hear your case for it.

Yes, American Beauty is a masterpiece of cinema. I can't count how many times I've seen it. City of God is also brilliant! As I recall, the sample is taken from that hectic opening sequence with the fast-paced editing where a knife is being sharpened and a chicken is being sliced up.

The Serenity of Suffering had its moments, but post-Issues, KoRn just lost their way. I still love to see KoRn live, and J.D. would have to be one of my favourite metal vocalists of all time, next to Maynard. Interestingly enough, my favourite album post-Issues is perhaps their most hated...It was called KoRn III, Remember Who You Are. It had the pain and the emotion of their earlier releases, and managed to capture what I originally loved about KoRn.

Whilst we're on the subject of KoRn, I've just found out that the little cupboard (hed) pe used in their music video for Ground, was Johnathan Davis's ex-girlfriend's house, and that inside that cupboard was a little chalk board where Davis had written the lyrics for Shoots and Ladders. Pretty cool piece of trivia...If it's to be believed.

Anyway, (hed) are coming to Australia shortly, so it will be nice to see what they can bring to the table. Hopefully they release a solid album. I haven't given up all hope.

Listening to the discography again, I really do feel that some of the post-Jive albums would fly higher if they ruthlessly cut out some of the lacklustre songs, and kept them as B-Sides instead.

Nice to know there are still people kicking about in this forum...

I remember around the time of OIA this place was a fucking Madhouse! Hahaha!

New World Orphans is enjoyable, it was a definite improvement over Insomnia that's for damn sure.

Jared has been one of my favorite vocalists ever since I first heard hed, I've just always thought he had an impressive vocal range that went from singing to rapping to death growls etc. Sort of like Mike Patton from Faith No More.

Based on the way you described that scene in City Of God, I can tell your a film guy and yes that was the exact scene.

I love Remember Who You Are, definitely one of my favorite post-Issues albums and also a nice return to form. By the way, J.D. & Maynard are two of my favorite vocalists as well.

I wish more motherfuckers came back to this forum as much as you two. hed_2012 is right, this place used to be kickin' back in the day.

(hed) will never be what they once were. not sure if it's because of age, changing times, or lineup (which I can't even keep track of anymore since Jahred's the only remaining member), but I agree that they've lost what made them so original back in the day. that's not to say they still aren't good or even great at times, but I don't think I will ever listen to a new (hed) song and feel the magic I felt when new shit from them came out back in the day.

that being said, I have been listening to a lot of their music in the last couple of weeks, mostly b-sides/unreleased. Buzzkill is still my fucking jam. and the new albums actually do have some gems, 'Hurt' being one of them I can still come back to regularly.

I can see why someone would favor Jahred as a vocalist. He's one of my favorites mainly because I don't think there's anyone like him. He's got a very distinguishable voice and he's able to do a LOT with it, not just technically but stylistically.

I just listened to an interview Jahred did regarding the new album and their australian tour and he talked about how he was inspired a lot during this album process by modern hip hop artists, e.g. Travis Scott, Drake, he even mentioned Twenty One Pilots...so uh, we should prepare for something that could go both ways lol. I applaud them for at least trying something different.

also shameless promotion but since you're talking about being film guys lol, check out my gofundme LOL gofundme.com/trolledmovie ...i'm trying to make a feature film with my buddy.

Oh yeah, no doubt Chizase. But most albums beat down on Insomnia. I’ve warmed to it slightly over the decade, but I just can’t get over how incredibly rushed that album feels.

Love the Mike Patton analogy. I’m a huge fan of Tomahawk and Peeping Tom as well. You might like to check them out if you haven’t.

On your point about Ray Luzier, sure, he’s a lovely dude and a damn good drummer, but I just don’t think he brings that disco edge that Silveria brought to the table.

Haha, yeah…HUGE FILM BUFF! This is why I love picking through (hed) pe songs…There is SO much in there. I remember my interest was first peaked when Wes played a riff in IFO that was the exact tone used in Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind. It’s incredible subtle, but for me, it’s the little, loving touches like that that give early (hed) that extra replay value.

Fuck yeah! New Tool album on August 30th! Very amped for that one!

Haha, yeah! Feeling’s mutual MadMadMan…I think the whole social networking thing has taken over, and now that everyone has Facebook, this place has become some kind of elephant graveyard. It usually gets a little bit of traffic when an album is released though, so maybe we will see some old faces come back?…Boy how the time fucking flies. It feels like yesterday that I was listening to OIA in my high school classroom. Wtf!

When it comes to age, changing times and lineup…I think it’s all of those things. You nailed it man. It’s never usually one thing is it? Things are always more complex than we give them credit for…

Where the fuck did Jaxon and Doug Boyce go? And Mawk? I really hope they left on reasonable terms with Jared. It seems a lot of people get pissed off at him and throw in the towel at some point…Or maybe I’m being unreasonable and am spouting bullshit speculation based on long-ago rumours. I don’t even know anymore.

Buzzkill is an AMAZING FUCKING SONG, and I can’t believe it’s not on Blackout. Haha.

I know what you mean about ‘trying something different’. You can’t fault (hed) on that…Or is it Jahred now? (haha), because they (he?) is never comfortable sticking to the same style. Even lyrically speaking, within a single song, he bounces around thematically like he has multiple-personality disorder. He can go from “rape” to “enlightenment” to “religion” to “the price of gas” to the “neighbours” to the “reptilians” within the space of a ten second window. Hahahaha!

I’ll check out that link as soon as I get a moment MadMadMan…I respect art, and I respect anyone who has the courage and the capacity to take on any kind of creative project…Let alone a fucking FEATURE FILM!!! You crazy bastard! Hahaha! Have you made some shorts yet?

Right on.

Good to hear from you guys.

Stay awesome. x

Postscriptum...Fuck yeah! Hurt is the stand out track on their latest album. That Chinaman chorus is so original and daring and somehow works beautifully.

P.P.S. I get the strong impression the follow up song ‘It’s You’ is an explicit apology song dedicated to his wife after he committed adultery. Hahaha. No?

Hey guys, i'm excited for the new album, CANIROCk and Bossup! were actually good surprise compared to the 2 previous albums (which i have no memories except for the raggae part).

I'm excited to hear Jahred over some hip hop trap beats haha.

The album cover completely sucks however, so amateurish...

I listened recently Back2BaseX in the car and like you said hed_2012, it's a very good album musically.

I see the fall down of hed pe with the grown up kid of Jahred featured on stage also, becoming a serious dad, it completely ruined the Jahred of Suburban Noize era.

And also the fact that the albums were no longer produced by Kottonmouth Kings staff, the end of the label.
Giving us albums with a metal side and raggae part, what happened to the usual mixture ?

And Evolution even sounded as a demo CD seriously, probably rushed for Jaxon/Mawk to leave.

However the good news is that they're back on Suburban Noize Records, it'll push Jahred at his best I hope and release more stuff, we're still waiting the third album of the second decade in 2019!

Jahred is definitively one of the most talented singer ever for the gangsta rap/metal/raggae vibes, even in live I don't unsterdand how the fuck he do that and how his voice is not tired.

My points of view of the albums :
S/T : Definitive 90s classic, the atmosphere... love 33 and Tired of Sleep
Broke : Best sound production, vinyl version is crazy, however when I hear Killing Time/Waiting to Die 2005 performances, DJ Product added a better touch of the tracks, the studio versions lacks of this.
Blackout : Too pop, soft, very hard for me to hear this album anymore, Blackout-Suck It Up-Sundown are my favorites. I still don't know what is the promo release containing "Liberation", a mystery for me.
OIA : A good album to listen when you are angry, hed pe at his best with jaxon, however the guitar solo of War is so messy at the end, laughable.
B2BX : Very good, define what hed pe is
Insomnia : I started listening to hed pe with this album during the myspace era with Mirrorballin in the web player, love the Madhouse introduction, the follow-up, it's punk, heavy from start to finish and the guy doing the punk chorus on Suffa/Tienanman Squared adds a lot. And the happy ending was really cool.
NWO : When the 30 tracks got released, I was so happy to hear so many new HED PE tracks however this album as of today is a complete mess of styles, most of good things were on DIY Guys also, this should have stayed exclusive to the live cd. A good thing of this album was the bonus tracks taken from B2BX, OIA.
Truth Rising : It's NWO but following Insomnia structure, very good mixture, I remember having listened a lot of times the tracks to understand how they work.

Then the Jahred Unite EP was awesome.

Evolution : Raggae tracks souding like Back 2 Base X, a pleasure
Forever : Generic rock album, raggae side is okay, worst bonus tracks cd also


----------------------

Oh also, on a hard drive, i still have the HED PE ONLINE banner
If someone here can re-upload that, would be cool!

Catar4x wrote:

Hey guys, i'm excited for the new album, CANIROCk and Bossup! were actually good surprise compared to the 2 previous albums (which i have no memories except for the raggae part).

I'm excited to hear Jahred over some hip hop trap beats haha.

The album cover completely sucks however, so amateurish...

You've heard 'Bossup'?? Is it because you got the Vinyl? I haven't heard it yet, but would love to lol.

Also in regards to the album cover, it was designed by a fan. I agree that it's not the best album cover, but I do think it's dope that Jahred reached out and let his fans make something for an actual release.

hed_2012 wrote:

Where the fuck did Jaxon and Doug Boyce go? And Mawk? I really hope they left on reasonable terms with Jared. It seems a lot of people get pissed off at him and throw in the towel at some point…Or maybe I’m being unreasonable and am spouting bullshit speculation based on long-ago rumours. I don’t even know anymore.

Not sure about Doug Boyce but I know that Jaxon left on good terms. Jahred has talked about how they still talk, he just wanted to go into a different direction career-wise. And not 100% sure about Mawk but i'd guess it has to do with his Work Visa. when Evolution came out, they had put up a gofundme to raise funds to help him with his work visa so maybe going through all of that became too much.

hed_2012 wrote:

I’ll check out that link as soon as I get a moment MadMadMan…I respect art, and I respect anyone who has the courage and the capacity to take on any kind of creative project…Let alone a fucking FEATURE FILM!!! You crazy bastard! Hahaha! Have you made some shorts yet?

believe me i'm a crazy motherfucker lol, I haven't even done short films, but i had a really cool idea for a full length and so i said fuck it, i want to make it happen. i have directed a couple music videos though.

MadMadMan565 wrote:

Catar4x wrote:

Hey guys, i'm excited for the new album, CANIROCk and Bossup! were actually good surprise compared to the 2 previous albums (which i have no memories except for the raggae part).

I'm excited to hear Jahred over some hip hop trap beats haha.

The album cover completely sucks however, so amateurish...

You've heard 'Bossup'?? Is it because you got the Vinyl? I haven't heard it yet, but would love to lol.

Also in regards to the album cover, it was designed by a fan. I agree that it's not the best album cover, but I do think it's dope that Jahred reached out and let his fans make something for an actual release.

It's cool from this point of view yes but even the t-shirts design are better, ironic.

I have the vinyl but I was fucking disappointed it wasn't an NWO b-side, very bad cash grab, especially for 50$...
I've keep it MINT then.

Here's bossup : https://mega.nz/#!qExU1ahL!8GqsmZYR_DjTxKPI7VDtNicp6Z0aEhGoNYxG-WaA-RY
Quality is shit due to vinyl source but the track is really cool, at first I didn't believed it was hed pe music haha.

Thanks heaps for sharing the track Catar4x.

But damn dude...I find this song infinitely disappointing. I'm glad you liked it though.

I'm getting the distinct impression this is going to be an album in which Jah heavily auto-tunes himself. I can't fucking stand auto-tune. Damn!

@ Madmadman...Ultimate respect for being so ambitious! The synopsis sounds really fucking intriguing. I love a plot that involves mistaken identity. It seems to have a bit of a Coen Brothers edge to it. I'd fund you, but I'm pretty scant on coin at the moment. All the best on your artistic endeavours dude! That's ace!

Thanks for sharing Catar4x!!! Lol I actually have mixed feelings on it. I really like the dark poppish vibe in the first two verses, and the first half of the chorus (you the one bossup) is catchy as fuck. I don't mind the auto tune as much; when it's used sparingly and to only add to a certain style, I can dig it. And it's a cool sort of style I haven't heard from them. Never thought I'd hear something so modern and mainstream from them.

That being said, the whole reggae breakdown was not needed at all. And in the rap part of the first and second verses it sounds like Jahred has dip in his mouth LMAO. Also, we should count in how many songs has he said "never say die, never tap out"...it's so lazy at this point. So many lyrics are recycled in their music. It's like he's run out of things to say.

and thank you so much hed_2012!!! Don't worry about not being able to fund man, i'm just stoked you think it sounds like a good idea. I have a couple really cool twists throughout the script that I think will take people by surprise. Listen to this tactic story, I actually work at a marketing company doing variable print design and I came up with a mailer that says "[name], help solve the mystery" and it looks like a missing person poster and [name] gets filled in with their name on the piece. I had my programmer buddy get into the back end of voter registration sites for my county and some other neighboring counties and he exported a list of everyone who's registered to vote in our area, and then we narrowed it down to artsy rich neighborhoods and i'm sending this piece out to 600 of those people we narrowed it down to...basically asking them to donate to my gofundme LOL. I really want to make this a reality.

Glad you finally hear it, it'll definitively be a particular album! Can't wait

It's a great idea mate. Much potential no doubt. It sounds like it has space for a comedic edge as well. I mean...it has such an absurd ring to it, which I love.

That'a a fucking clever way of narrowing down the target audience for the funding man. Well played!

You must let me know when it's done! Might be a good few years from now, but with some strength and determination, you can do it!

Peep my attempt at a horror film here when you get a chance...I wrote, directed, edited, and produced it a few years back. It's a pretty strange film.

I was very much inspired by Stanley Kubrick's The Shining at the time of production.

It doesn't hold up as a movie unfortunately, and didn't come close to hitting the emotional peaks I had hoped for, but it's beautifully shot, and I was happy with the nightmare sequence.

I will get back into filmmaking again one day, when I have the time and money to do so.

https://vimeo.com/94271345

hed_2012 wrote:

It's a great idea mate. Much potential no doubt. It sounds like it has space for a comedic edge as well. I mean...it has such an absurd ring to it, which I love.

That'a a fucking clever way of narrowing down the target audience for the funding man. Well played!

You must let me know when it's done! Might be a good few years from now, but with some strength and determination, you can do it!

Peep my attempt at a horror film here when you get a chance...I wrote, directed, edited, and produced it a few years back. It's a pretty strange film.

I was very much inspired by Stanley Kubrick's The Shining at the time of production.

It doesn't hold up as a movie unfortunately, and didn't come close to hitting the emotional peaks I had hoped for, but it's beautifully shot, and I was happy with the nightmare sequence.

I will get back into filmmaking again one day, when I have the time and money to do so.

https://vimeo.com/94271345

Thanks man, and I agree, I definitely want it to have a large comedic edge. I want it to be completely ridiculous in certain aspects. Also, much like the title implies, I want to troll the audience lol.

You're being hard on yourself, though. I just watched that film you linked and holy shit it is so good. I definitely got the The Shining influence. I can't believe how visually beautiful it looked. The acting was superb too, you did a great job directing them. You should definitely get back into it, you're really talented. I'm actually really envious lol.

Thanks for your kind words man. I agree that it's visually beautiful, but that's about it.

Maybe this is a case of me being my own worst critic. Haha.

I think the pre-ordered (hed) albums have arrived on people's door steps today...

Anyone got a copy yet? Or did I get the dates wrong?

Not sure. Either way we will have it in the next 3 days, since official release is Friday. This is probably the first album i've been eager to listen to from them in a long time.

The new album looks leaked but I only managed to get 4 tracks, someone have more?

I don't see any leaks. Where are you seeing 4 tracks?

Ok, it seems extracted from an early cd shipped, guess today or tomorrow we can listen the full thing.

Here's the tracks i got :

- PWF (Playingwfire)
- Bossup (cd quality)
- NOAPOLOGIES
- ?? (no idea of the name)

https://mega.nz/#!DAADwSBA!box_2K-GOHPG9EXVWKkKwS40BjD3uOkDoQgSevzoC9Y

Catar4x wrote:

Ok, it seems extracted from an early cd shipped, guess today or tomorrow we can listen the full thing.

Here's the tracks i got :

- PWF (Playingwfire)
- Bossup (cd quality)
- NOAPOLOGIES
- ?? (no idea of the name)

https://mega.nz/#!DAADwSBA!box_2K-GOHPG9EXVWKkKwS40BjD3uOkDoQgSevzoC9Y

so awesome, thanks for the tracks man! have no clue where you found them, 'cause I've been scowering the internet and couldn't find anything.

i'll reserve discussion about what i think about these tracks until we get all of them. I have mixed feelings.

also that track that you aren't sure about is WHYNOTME. Jahred says "why not me" in the song, and it matches the thrash punk vibe from all the reviews i've read.

MadMadMan565 wrote:

Catar4x wrote:

Ok, it seems extracted from an early cd shipped, guess today or tomorrow we can listen the full thing.

Here's the tracks i got :

- PWF (Playingwfire)
- Bossup (cd quality)
- NOAPOLOGIES
- ?? (no idea of the name)

https://mega.nz/#!DAADwSBA!box_2K-GOHPG9EXVWKkKwS40BjD3uOkDoQgSevzoC9Y

so awesome, thanks for the tracks man! have no clue where you found them, 'cause I've been scowering the internet and couldn't find anything.

i'll reserve discussion about what i think about these tracks until we get all of them. I have mixed feelings.

also that track that you aren't sure about is WHYNOTME. Jahred says "why not me" in the song, and it matches the thrash punk vibe from all the reviews i've read.

Thanks!

Full album : ...

Edit: album is out