It feels like only yesterday they became a thing, though the band Disturbed has been around since 1994, with the more consistent version most of us recognize, utilizing the beautifully distorted vocal talents of David Draiman, since 1996.  When I saw Disturbed come up in the upcoming releases list, I had to go back and revisit their entire catalog.

I discovered that not only did The Sickness have a 10^th Anniversary Edition release, but they also did a 20^th Anniversary Edition one, too.  Which made me giggle; it feels like just yesterday I was hanging out in my old boyfriend’s basement, stuffing my face with his momma’s delicious authentic Mexican food, buddies everywhere, kicking ass on whatever console we were playing at the time, and blasting this album.  We may not have spoken the same primary language, but I knew it was a sin to refuse a plate from his mom, and she likewise cared not at how loud we cranked the stereo, despite being an incredibly hard-working 3^rd shift nurse.  Giving The Sickness another listen for the first time in a long time the other day brought back all those really strong core memories, especially from the olfactory perspective.  (Both good and bad, which is the reality for both Mexican food and teenage assholes, after all.)  With that written, it’s also amazing how all those lyrics, growls, and riffs create a comforting little stink cloud returning from long-term storage of the year 2000. 

You know what else Disturbed released several years ago?  They did a live album from Red Rocks.  Anyone who’s had any sort of concert conversation with me recently knows full well that I intend to set a pilgrimage for Red Rocks in 2023 to see something.  Was I impressed with Disturbed-Live at Red Rocks?  Heck yes, I was.  Will I buy that album?  Yeah.  I think I might.  At a minimum, it was a comprehensive live catalog of their work up to that point in 2016.  I’m only sorry I missed that a lot sooner, simply because my period of general snobbery toward nü-metal.  And that’s okay.  I don’t know that’s gone completely, though likewise, I think we all forget where we come from sometimes. 

Disturbed releases new album Divisive on November 18^th via Reprise Records.  Info on how to pre-order/save for streaming found here:  https://disturbed.lnk.to/Divisive  The singles from this upcoming drop seem incredibly consistent with the sound quality of the Disturbed I remember.  They even do a song featuring Heart’s Ann Wilson, which I’m looking forward to checking out further.  Divisive truly feels accessible to whatever you might be looking for in terms of format, color, features, and the like.  Not to mention, I think their cover art just looks rad, featuring their mascot of sorts from most of the years they’ve been active, simply named, “The Guy.” 

Divisive truly is a misnomer here; I think there’s something for everyone on this album, be you a metal head skeptic or nü-metal poser or even the hard-rocker studded jeans/flame button down-wearing, tribal tattoo armband-flashing with the backward white sunnies and thinly manicured goatee hugging the jawline thing-having-type…OR maybe just a former teenage chubby redheaded asshole chick eating tacos and laughing with her buds in a sketchy basement.  It fits all of us goons, so go embrace this release. 

@siliconeandvinyl