Break Down the Breakdown

Ohhh man I love breakdowns. The bigger, the heavier, the screamier, the rhythmicier, the better!

In all honesty, this is where metal gets silly. It's really easy to dig deep into complex song structure or analyze weird scales or passages and get totally enveloped in dissecting how everything works. But the inevitable will happen. The floor drops out from under you, all shredology comes to a screeching halt, your face stops melting just for a bit...and the breakdown HAPPENS! And boy howdy are there some geniuses out there who know their way around making this metal phenomenon happen. But we'll get to them in a sec, first lets talk about what makes breakdowns and what makes them fun(ny). Shall we? Yes. We shall.

Okay, so, I'm listening to "Gimme A D" by Parkway Drive (www.purevolume.com/parkwaydrive). These Aussie teens (so young, so good, so not fair) with the aid of the production wizardry of Adam D provide probably the most clear cut, auditory definition of breakdownage. The song starts with pure unadulterated craziness: tapping, screaming, monster guitar tone, double kick in your face, more tapping...it's pretty much like a full frontal assault of metal. And what's not to like with that?! Nothing. Nothing's not to like. Double negatives, like double bass pedals, are fun. Anyway, right after getting assaulted with facemeltage for no more than about 50 seconds, we're hit with a breakdown (the first one at least). After a fast galloped section, everything stops for a beat and an ultra elementary, heavily rhythmic passage begins. Contrasting with the pace and ferocity in the beginning of the song, the half time feel combined with the rhythmic (versus melodic) nature of the guitars lends to the sludgy, headbanging wonderfulness of a breakdown.

In my own opinion, a successful (not to mention rad) breakdown is one that is sandwiched with fast, melodic guitars, complex vocal leads, and technical drumming. When that breakdown hits, the simplicity in all three of these independent lines unifies into one simplified beast of a rhythm. And that's awesome. The sole purpose of this unity is to make the listener/crowd lose their minds. It's hard to articulate how exactly that works. I think the best way to put it is that the complexity and busy nature of the parts that lead up to the BD (as I'll call it because I'm getting tired of typing "breakdown" so often) create a bit of anxiety that builds in the listener/audience. So when that quality in the music that keeps you so focused on what's happening stops and you're hit with an almost OVER-simplified riff, that anxiety gets released in the form of punchdancing, jumping around like an idiot, goosebumps, or for me: laughter. It's an awesome feeling.

There are a number of bands who all are known for their ability to let the floor drop out from under you, namely Bleeding Through, Every Time I Die, Parkway Drive, Unearth...but I've gotta say that the undisputed champions of the ole BD would have to be Evergreen Terrace. Holy butts. They're not really the most shred-y band out there, but there's enough going on in their verses/choruses as a function of their punk background and influences that the meat of their songs are very fast tempo'd and busy. But then it comes. Sometime around the second verse or second chorus. Metal happens. Both guitars and the bass play some ridiculously simple, single-note rhythm that gets matched by the kick drum. The snare/cymbals play a simple 4/4 lick that drives the off-beat crunch of the instruments behind it. It's such a distinctive sound and feel and I think this band has captured better than anyone else. They seem to revel in the simplicity. And that's really the key to a successful breakdown. Check out the following songs (BD time is in parentheses) from their myspace - www.myspace.com/evergreenterrace:

Wolfbiker (1:12)
Chaney Can't Quite Riff Like Helmet's Page Hamilton (builds @ 2:42, floor drops out at 2:54)
Where There Is Fire (1:26 and again is reprised at the end of the song at 3:12)
New Friend Request (builds @ 2:23, lose your mind at 2:35)

...oh man, and there are so many more...but you get the idea. Hopefully you'll be able to hear them on your own and enjoy the nature of the beast.

There's nothing like an Evergreen Terrace breakdown.

Dude, bro. Wolfbiker!