Unearth--Self Titled DVD
The band's debut budget DVD.
Packaging--
The good:
Simple black cover with the logo in white. THe back has a photo, the tracklisting, and a bio. Straightforward.
The bad:
With a budget DVD, I find it hard to complain...an insert would've been nice, but few bands really put the time and effort into DVD packaging.
The music:
The good:
Unearth is one of the better metalcore bands out there today. Probably because they're more metal than core. Lots of Maiden/Slayer influenced riffs with growl/barked vocals. I reviewed their last album here.
This DVD has three live songs and some interview stuff. The live stuff is filmed very well. Several cameras, very crisp, slick picture and colors, and perhaps most important--there aren't a nauseating amount of cuts. The video is varied, there's plenty going on, plenty of different shots, but it's done very nicely. For some reason the new trend in live DVDs is to edit them at a nauseating rate of a different shot every two seconds...this does a good job.
There's a brief segment of "fruitcake eating contest" (which means one guy trying to eat a whole fruitcake) on here which is amusing though somewhat stupid. In my old age things like this just don't seem as entertaining, but I'm sure the kids will love it.
The bad--
This is a bit short...13 minutes...but for $4, you can't be expecting much. I would've gladly paid $10 to get more. I think this is really to be viewed as a promo and a way to get the band's name out quickly and cheaply. Many people will buy this just because it's a cheap DVD, so that's fine. This just has a feel of a "bonus DVD" that would be free with the purchase of the CD. A really good bonus DVD, but still not the actual product.
I really really really fucking hate when hardcore or metal bands incorporate clean vocals into their songs. Unearth dabbles with this so it's not as nauseating as say, Killswitch...but I wish they'd give that up and go metal...like Darkest Hour.
Recap�
Worth $4...hell it's worth $5. I wouldn't go much further. If you like metal and are on the fence with the whole "metalcore" thing, here's a good band to start with. I personally have come to loathe metalcore, and I still like this one.
Want more info?
Unearth
Review by Chris