The latest release from the Canadian madman Devin Townsend, The Moth, sees him in the role of maniacal conductor, fusing bombastic cinematic orchestral pieces with technical progressive metal and some electronic/industrial flavouring for something truly unique in his extensive back catalogue. More score than album, The Moth sees Townsend team up with the North Netherland’s Orchestra and Choir to create something new and original that deserves recognition for the sheer size and scope of its ambition alone. For fans this album is sure to be divisive, as it’s a big departure from where he usually stands. But then again, this isn’t the first time he’s done something like this. Whilst no stranger to orchestration throughout his storied career this is the first time it has been the base upon which everything is built, and the first time he’s taken such a lead role in the composition. Spending over a decade now since the idea was first floated, learning, practicing and honing the craft before venturing on this project in earnest, Devin Townsend has delivered a record full of intrigue, wonder and emotion, through a medium many fans will be less experienced in.
There’s a bit of everything in this record, it flows from a soft, lilting stream, carrying listeners along a magical journey through to a flooding torrent, sweeping you downstream, and everything in between. It really shines when it leans fully into its spectacular pomp, the ending passages of ‘Ode To My Eye’ into ‘Enter the City’ showcase this in all its glory. It is decadent, over the top a sheer joy to listen to, music that hits right into the soul. The extra vocal collaborations from the likes of Anneka Van Giersbergen and Lynn Wu, of progressive Chinese band Ou, add a softer contrast to the powerhouse of Devin’s own voice, which perhaps more than ever he’s had the opportunity to really stretch on this.
There is something almost overwhelming about how much is happening at any given moment, and yet it never feels careless. Every swell of choir, every thunderous orchestral rise, every strange electronic texture feels like another piece of some enormous, impossible, futuristic yet vintage contraption surging into life. At times it is beautiful, at times it is ridiculous, and often it is both at once, but that has always been part of Townsend’s charm. He can make something sound like the end of the world and a nervous breakdown in a glitter cannon at the same time.
“He can make something sound like the end of the world and a nervous breakdown in a glitter cannon at the same time.”
It wouldn’t be Heavy Devy though without his compulsion to simply cause chaos. Whilst the more recognisably “metal” moments of heavy are sparse, they hit like an 18 wheeler that’s lost control. ‘War Beyond Words’ is a perfect showcase for this, blending the technical and progressive guitars and drum work, which serve almost as a whole percussive unit to support the wider orchestra, because they are the stars of this record, the emotional route through which everything runs, creating the beauty, the drama and the downright strange. It’s these moments of the most dramatic, the most over the top that will give listeners who crave the heaviness something of what they need, it may not be heavy in the way you’re used to but there’s no doubt that it is heavy.
What may ultimately divide listeners is also what makes the album so fascinating. This is not a record built for casual consumption, nor is it one that necessarily offers immediate hooks in the way some of his more direct material does. It asks for patience, and at times perhaps even demands it. There are passages where the grandeur threatens to swallow the songs whole, where the scale becomes so massive that it can feel difficult to find the human centre beneath it all. But when that centre does emerge, when his voice cuts through the storm or the choir rises like some celestial army, it is genuinely stunning.
What Devin Townsend has achieved on this release is nothing short of astonishing, and any fan of his music should absolutely check it out, even if high drama classical symphonies aren’t your thing, the craft, the love and care that has gone into this deserves an opportunity to wow you. Set aside the time listen to it all from start to finish, no dipping in or out and allow this to simply transport you.