Believe me, I want a Mudvayne reunion. I don’t mean a one-off show at some festival in California either. I want a full-blown global tour in support of a kick ass new album. But as much as I want to see the revival of one of the most unique metal bands of the early 2000s, the truth is that we simply don’t need a Mudvayne reunion at this point. Even though there may be countless reasons why the quartet should regroup and promptly head back into the studio, there are four huge reasons why it is best that they remain disbanded for now.
Last time we wanted Mudvayne, we got Mudvayne.
Let’s clear the air and talk about Mudvayne for a moment. Their self-titled album dropped in late 2009 with little promotion and no tour to support it. Although it peaked at number 53 on the Billboard 200 chart (The New Game hit #15, Lost and Found landed happily at #2), it received mixed reviews. Perhaps it was too close to The New Game, perhaps it just wasn’t “good” enough. Even though it’s been nearly seven years, the nostalgia of Mudvayne may not be powerful enough yet to drive away the memory of their lowest selling album.
Mudvayne wasn’t bad. Critics may not have the nicest things to say about it, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a solid effort from a band that technically released three albums in three years. “Dead Inside” is beautifully macabre. “Scream With Me” is pleasantly reminiscent of Lost and Found. While lyrically the entire album pales in comparison to their first two, there are plenty of other bands that get by on cliché phrases and the standard rock tropes. Put this record track to track against the fifth album from a similar band and Mudvayne will at least sound different than the norm.
Still, a hiatus immediately following a quiet album release doesn’t give them a lot of momentum. Before we get a Mudvayne reunion, we need to take a step back from the band consider what we want from them. Arena shows, festival appearances, world tours? The New Game hit and we wanted more. They gave us Mudvayne and here we are, still skipping over “Closer” to hear “Dig” for the millionth time. It’d be best to wait for them to regroup and organically write new material than force them back together and strong-arm them into putting out thirteen more tracks that might fall short of expectations.
They’re still giving us new music…just not together…
Nothing can replace or replicate Mudvayne, plain and simple. Though their sound has debatably gotten more predictably structured toward the end, there’s no denying that the architects of math metal are incomparable. And while the band as a whole is phenomenal, the members individually are pretty top notch.
Hellyeah fucking rocks. Chad Gray on vocals and Vinnie Paul on drums; need I say more? Their self-titled debut is absolutely killer. These days some of their tracks like “Hush” and “Moth” are drifting toward the Mudvayne-esque sound more so than some of their previous Southern driven songs “Hell of a Time” and “Drink Drank Drunk”. If it’s the voice of Mudvayne you’re missing, this will do the trick.
The other three aren’t just sitting around twiddling thumbs either. Guitarist Greg Tribbett and drummer Matt McDonough make up half of Audiotopsy and if you haven’t checked out the Billy Keeton led four piece, take our word for it and give them a listen. Meanwhile, bassist Ryan Martinie is keeping busy with the funky Soften The Glare. No, Mudvayne may not be active but we’re still getting new music from all four members; how many other defunct bands can say the same?
Does Mudvayne even want a reunion?
Fans badly want a reunion, so much so that it’s starting to piss Chad Gray off. Don’t get me wrong, I want it too. Though I’d been listening to them since The End of All Things to Come, I only caught them live once in early 2009. Smack dab between 2008’s The New Game and the tourless Mudvayne¸ their show everything I expected it would be. Flying out of the gate with “Not Falling” and ending the night with “Dig”, you couldn’t ask for better set from a band that would stop touring not long after.
Yet I do, and I’m not alone, but it doesn’t sound like the band wants any part of it.
Hellyeah is trucking ahead strongly with no signs of pumping the brakes. As shown with their diverse discography, the band has a lot of creative freedom. Bouncing from tracks like “Alcoholin Ass” and “Better Man” to “Human” and “Leap of Faith”, Chad and company are able to experiment without being pressured to fit the Mudvayne mold. He’s doing exactly what he wants to be doing right now, and the same can be said for the rest of the band. Greg and Matt are currently touring with Audiotopsy and Ryan is touring with Soften The Glare. They’re moving on without Mudvayne; why shouldn’t we?
It doesn’t sound like a reunion is in the near future. Hellyeah parting ways with Greg leaves everything except the truth up for assumption. Even though Corey Taylor and Jim Root have shown that they can still rock together in Slipknot despite Root being fired from Stone Sour, you’ve got to believe there’d be a little tension lingering for anyone put in that position. With Chad forging on in Hellyeah, and the rest of the quartet making their way elsewhere, their separation looks nowhere near over.
Because they’re the band metal deserves, but not the band it needs right now.
Mudvayne will always occupy their own patch of turf in the metal scene and regardless if they reunite now or never, nothing will change that. In a decade they produced five albums, three of them certified gold, and built a pretty fierce fan base around the world. They’ve carved their names into history and I guarantee we’ll still hear “Not Falling” and “Happy” on radio stations for years to come. Mudvayne will continue to be present on the scene whether or not they release new music but that doesn’t mean the world of metal is crippled in their absence.
Mainstream or underground, metal is still alive and well. With so many amazing bands touring and releasing new music, it’s not hard to find something to rock to. Whitechapel, Mastodon, Opeth, Dillinger Escape Plan. We’re months away from new a freakin Metallica record. To anyone that says metal is dead, one look at the Ozzfest Meets Knotfest lineup will say otherwise. Mudvayne may be sorely missed, but we sure as hell aren’t suffering without them.
