My Damnation
Encyclopedia
My Damnation was met with generally positive ratings, but with mixed comments varying on the reviewer's opinion of the band's current sound. Allmusic, which standardizes ratings out 5 stars, gave it 3 stars and stated "Smashing together the macabre intensity of death metal
with the chugging, technical gymnastics of metalcore
, Utah’s Chelsea Grin brutalize listeners with their punishing sophomore effort", while others credited is a "great contribution to the dwindling deathcore scene."
Luke Amos of The New Review gave the album a 3.5 out of 5, but had a disappointed tone in his review as he stated; "Now, don’t get me wrong, this album isn’t bad. But it is bland. In fact, quite a few of the tracks get lost in the shuffle because they lack hooks." He later explained "I really wanted to give this album a perfect score. I love Chelsea Grin and will eagerly await their next release but sadly, this album isn’t up to par. I hope and pray that these young men see My Damnation as a critical moment in their band’s life. They are young and have the talent and potential to be much greater than My Damnation. If they take the lessons learned from this album and combine it with everything Desolation of Eden did properly then their third album will be an absolute monster. I advise everyone to at least give this album at least one listen. These guys deserve that much." Mind Equals Blown gave the record a 3 out of 5 with their concluding statement being "Although this album exhibits many things that have already been done, it’s really hard to say that it’s a bad album. Many deathcore purists will whine and hate on this album, but I really think that Chelsea Grin have come a long way with their songwriting abilities and vocal talents that popularized them in the first place. If you loved their single “My Damnation,” then this album will be on constant rotation for you. If you didn’t like the track, you will not like this album."
Production
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
with the chugging, technical gymnastics of metalcore
Metalcore
Metalcore is a subgenre of heavy metal combining various elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk. The name is a portmanteau of the names of the two genres. The term took on its current meaning in the mid-1990s, describing bands such as Earth Crisis, Deadguy and Integrity...
, Utah’s Chelsea Grin brutalize listeners with their punishing sophomore effort", while others credited is a "great contribution to the dwindling deathcore scene."
Luke Amos of The New Review gave the album a 3.5 out of 5, but had a disappointed tone in his review as he stated; "Now, don’t get me wrong, this album isn’t bad. But it is bland. In fact, quite a few of the tracks get lost in the shuffle because they lack hooks." He later explained "I really wanted to give this album a perfect score. I love Chelsea Grin and will eagerly await their next release but sadly, this album isn’t up to par. I hope and pray that these young men see My Damnation as a critical moment in their band’s life. They are young and have the talent and potential to be much greater than My Damnation. If they take the lessons learned from this album and combine it with everything Desolation of Eden did properly then their third album will be an absolute monster. I advise everyone to at least give this album at least one listen. These guys deserve that much." Mind Equals Blown gave the record a 3 out of 5 with their concluding statement being "Although this album exhibits many things that have already been done, it’s really hard to say that it’s a bad album. Many deathcore purists will whine and hate on this album, but I really think that Chelsea Grin have come a long way with their songwriting abilities and vocal talents that popularized them in the first place. If you loved their single “My Damnation,” then this album will be on constant rotation for you. If you didn’t like the track, you will not like this album."
Track listing
Charts
| Charts | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
64 |
| U.S. Billboard Rock Albums | 16 |
| U.S. Billboard Independent Albums | 9 |
| U.S. Billboard Hard Rock Albums | 6 |
Personnel
Chelsea Grin- Andrew Carlston - drums
- David Flinn - bass guitar
- Jaek Harmond - guitars
- Dan Jones - guitars
- Alex Koehler - vocals
- Michael Stafford - lead guitar
Production
- ProducedSound recording and reproductionSound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
, mixedAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
and engineered by Chris "Zeuss" HarrisZeussChris "Zeuss" Harris is a record producer who specializes in metal and hardcore albums. He is based in Hadley, Massachusetts and he owns and operates Planet-Z recordings. Zeuss started his music career in metal bands, the best known being Doom Nation, before taking on music production full time... - Artwork by Brian P. Johnson
- Layout by Mike Milford
- Photography by Jeremy Saffer