Nodes of Ranvier

Nodes of Ranvier: The Years to ComeThe Years to Come (2005)
Facedown Records

Reviewer Rating: 1

Contributed by: RyanMRyanM
(others by this writer | submit your own)
Published on December 9th 2005Amongst the influx of newly bred "American metal" (okay, metalcore) acts, Nodes of Ranvier fall in line with the pack with an album that gives little in terms of excitement or surprises. The Years to Come certainly isn't the worst to come from the seemingly overcrowded genre, but it falls forgettabl.

Amongst the influx of newly bred "American metal" (okay, metalcore) acts, Nodes of Ranvier fall in line with the pack with an album that gives little in terms of excitement or surprises. The Years to Come certainly isn't the worst to come from the seemingly overcrowded genre, but it falls forgettably by the wayside. The influences are fairly easy to pick out, and the standard mixing of melody into the throaty screams is fulfilled, but neither part seems terribly memorable or refreshing. Unfortunately, Nick Murphy's screams are far too reminiscent of those from Atreyu, which can never be good; and although his sung vocals are decent enough, the melodies are far too generic.

Everything that can be said about Year has been said over and over again in the past few years. The playing is proficient but lacks noticeable creativity and is thusly unchallenging. The screams are sub-par and the vocal melodies are cheesy or worse (see the forgettable "Grave"). The guitars chug alongside the unobtrusive drumming in similar patterns throughout all the songs. To be fair, there are moments that might satisfy on the first few listens (the title track has some) but the dynamic is so predictable its replay value is completely lost. As for energy level, the screams are too muffled and boring (I can't forgive the overwhelming Atreyu similarity) to build much of anything, and the singing can be too whiny or misplaced. The problem is the album is merely proficient in a style that has worn out its welcome through the last few years and nothing that could be considered new or noteworthy is even considered.

It's difficult to even write reviews for this stuff anymore. We've all seen too much of it come and too much of it go (hopefully more of the latter). Nodes is not the worst out there, but they certainly aren't the best either. They reside in a middle ground of apathy, where all anyone does is go through the motions with little regard as to what it means and why they do it. Greenberg called this "Alexandrianism;" well, I'm not quite as nice as Greenberg, and this is just boring.

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Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not respon sible for them in any way. Seriously.

Anonymous (March 30, 2006)

good review! finally someone that feels the same way I do about this album. I really enjoyed their last album and I expected to like this one, but it's definitely a step down. They've never relied on breakdowns, but why did they have to eliminate ALL of them?? This shit's boring! And the singing.. wow... i won't even get into that. Better luck next time!

Anonymous (February 26, 2006)

It's true bands that are this good are hated because of the label "Christian"

Anonymous (February 26, 2006)

Does this site allow any clown to write a review? This guy sounds like a biased 12 year old. 3 paragraphs of worthless opinion I could of went without reading. I don't know why he expects the screaming/singing/guitar to be dramatically different. He's right that it is stuff that's been done before and the guy sounds alot like the screamer from Atreyu BUT Nodes does a great job with mixing up the tempo and fitting the vocals properly with the music. Something this fool looked past when comparing them to other bands in the same genre. Listen to the cd and you'll see what I mean... even the slower tune Grave has a wicked solo that even if it has been done before I've never heard it in a song like that. NOR are incredibly talented musicians. Take the song Relentless which starts out intense but just after a minute completely slows down. You would think it might be out of place but Nodes make it flow beautifully. My only complaint is I think their name is dumb. Now do me a favor and don't let someone who has already decided if they like something before listening to it write a review.

Anonymous (January 22, 2006)

this band used to at least have a semi-original sound. this album sounds like they're just trying to be like everybody else. bores me.

Anonymous (January 17, 2006)

Nodes has always been one of my favorite bands, but all these songs sounded the same. also, Nodes of Ranvier is not a Christian band. though a few members are Christians, for all you commenting on that. i just recieved an email from the band explaining such. its too bad though. i liked them more when i thought they had a message they believed in.

LaidToWaste (December 15, 2005)

people hate christian hardcore cause they are better than all those other tough guy hardcore bands. they are just jealous they cant make music like The Chariot or As I Lay Dying

soulbleed (December 14, 2005)

this band is actually pretty solid. they should be commended for even making it to the three-album mark. that's a feat in and of itself.

crazytoledo (December 12, 2005)

EVERYONE BUY THE ABSENCE 'From Your Grave' CD Now

Anonymous (December 10, 2005)

boycott christian hardcore

Big_Guy (December 10, 2005)

this band is about as lame as All That Remains

notfeelingcreative (December 9, 2005)

Exactly, now you've killed its esoteric appeal!!!

Anonymous (December 9, 2005)

nodes of ranvier are the spaces in schwann cells
biology lesson of the day

yeah, or in other terms they are the spaces between the myelin sheaths on an axon in a nueron

crazytoledo (December 9, 2005)

Nodes of Ranvier are quite good at times. Nothing too special though.

darkstarm (December 9, 2005)

there sure were a lot of crappy scores today.

Anonymous (December 9, 2005)

nodes of ranvier are the spaces in schwann cells
biology lesson of the day

notfeelingcreative (December 9, 2005)

Score is for the esoteric appeal of the band's name.

Anonymous (December 9, 2005)

Nick the singer (The sill canvas) used to be the guitarest of this band

Anonymous (December 9, 2005)

I think the reviewer said all that can be said about this album