The Biscuit Merchant (THE GRAND DESIGN RELEASED)

[Ultimetalhead]

So, I figure it'd be much better to just have a thread for all my stuff rather than just making a thread every time I do a new album, so here we are.

One can download all the stuff I have right here.



1. Our Lady of Perpetual Motion (1:59)
2. City in the Sky (4:15)
3. Vanilla Soup (3:34)
4. Life Cycle: I. The Color of Childhood (5:35)
5. Life Cycle: II. The Shock of Reality (9:15)
6. Life Cycle: III. The Will To Survive (3:54)
7. Through the Mist (3:37)
8. Journey to Arrhythmia (2:24)
9. Denim Obsession (4:12)
10. Rivers of Red (10:05)

https://www.megaupload.com/?d=SIEPQBB3



1. Sunrise (2:46)
2. The Death of Peace (6:14)
3. Enraged (5:39)
4. Alternate Universe (5:53)
5. Office of Superficial Indulgence (4:43)
6. Afterlife (24:00)

https://www.mediafire.com/?zn2hjiiqwtw




1. Ladybug's Final Moments (7:24)
2. Pharaoh's Rising (7:03)
3. Soothing Winds (3:30)
4. The Crimson Dance (6:45)
5. Hookline (4:52)
6. Chaos & Discord (4:26)
7. Electric Wasteland (6:18)
8. Spider's Ultimate Triumph (6:23)

https://www.mediafire.com/?mumkugnzdyy



1. Death Machine (4:28)
2. Breakfast of Champions (3:58)
3. Laser Tissue Eradication (4:48)
4. The Machine Never Sleeps (6:05)
5. Absence of Light (5:06)
6. Vehicles of Self-Loathing (4:17)
7. Zombie Sheep Apocalypse (9:09)
         I. Of Wool and Man (0:00)
         II. Sheep Revolt! (2:07)
         III. The Final Battle for Ewemanity (3:58)
         IV. A Dream of Sheep (The New Age) (7:11)

https://www.mediafire.com/?5oln16cuuc24c6j Artwork by Hyperplex.



1. Miracle (6:57)
2. Refresh (4:59)
3. Shadows (4:34)
4. Solar (4:39)
5. Lunar (6:11)
6. Snow Maiden (6:23)
7. Void (5:42)
8. Harvest the Wind (6:26)

Artwork by Rafael Guerra.
https://www.mediafire.com/?76tf6uphz4913dx



1. Bite the Bullet (3:43)
2. Sink Rate (9:04)
3. Pharaoh's Revenge (7:09)
4. Souls on Board (10:03)
5. Cyclone of Idiocy (Riversong) (4:00)
6. The Grand Design (22:51)

https://www.mediafire.com/?rkcvtpso12pyqgp

Artwork by Rafael Guerra.

[Ultimetalhead]

Here's The Crimson Dance.

https://www.mediafire.com/?jktgzqqwofz

[ZBomber]

Downloading now, I'll listen to some of it tonight and post my thoughts. 

[ZBomber]

Just listened to the newest song. Sick chops.  I listened to your last album in the other thread and it was also pretty epic. I'm gonna have to check your first album pretty soon too, although I think I already heard a track or two from it.

Anyways, sent "The Crimson Dance" to my friend, its definitely his type of music. Keep up the good work, can't wait to hear the rest of the new album 

[Ultimetalhead]

THE BISCUIT MERCHANT HIRES EXTRA HELP FOR NEXT SOLO ALBUM WHICH WILL SURELY BE "SOMETHING TO WRITE HOME ABOUT"

Well, I've always said the biggest weakness of my music is the production, and I know a certain someone who knows a certain thing or two about mixing, so I figured I'd enlist his help in making this next album sound absolutely phenomenal. His name, is Austin Billings.

Yes, Austin of The Fury Abstract is mixing my music, and holy shit it sounds fantastic.

[Arcaeus]

That. Is. Epic.

Awesome of Austin to do. I really like the song, sick riffs, solo at 4:45 made me smile in my pants I really need to stop being lazy and start playing my own guitar more...

[Ultimetalhead]

Well, unfortunately Austin seems to have ditched this project completely. He hasn't responded to my PMs or my IMs, so I'm moving on. I have 3 more songs left to record, and they'll all be done by Friday. The mix is obviously going to suffer, but not too much. It's going to be about the same quality as Alternate Universe, maybe a little better. The important part is the music, and this easily beats the last one. Hope it doesn't deter anyone. Let's just forget it ever happened. 

[Ultimetalhead]

New album link posted. Download, listen, and don't forget about feedback. 

[ZBomber]

New album link posted. Download, listen, and don't forget about feedback. 

I'll download it tonight and post my thoughts tomorrow.

[Ultimetalhead]

Looking forward to it. 

[ZBomber]

OK, just finished listening to the album.

The first two tracks are killer!  Very rocking

Soothing Wind is awesome. The riff sounds great clean, and the kick into distortion was unexpected and epic.

The guitar solos in The Crimson Dance might be some of the best on the album. The intro to Hookline is also pretty impressive.

The title track is my favorite on the album, very killer riff. Very prog sounding too. 

Electric Wasteland has some great drumming, and I love the break into the clean section. The clean riff reminds me of something, but I just can't put my finger on it.... I remember now, its Rush, something off the debut album... think it's "Here Again".

Spider's Ultimate Triumph is an awesome album closer. The riff around 3:15 is

All in all, I loved the album, I thought it was really good. What's even more impressive is how quickly you finished it, thats your second album in a year! Any plans on when you're gonna start the next one?

[Ultimetalhead]

Thanks for the review, glad you liked it.  The clean riff in EW was heavily based off of Comfortably Numb. I'm not sure where you're getting the Rush influence from. I'm glad you liked the title track. I had been sitting on that main riff for quite a while, and it felt good to finally lay it down.

I've already started writing for the next one, and it will most likely be out in late July-early September at the latest.  I haven't really decided which direction to take it yet. There's a chance I may go into more of an instrumental death metal direction, but there's also a possibility that I might try a more melodic feel. Less riffy, more focused on melodies laid on top, e.t.c.

[Ultimetalhead]

THE BISCUIT MERCHANT RELEASES NEXT ALBUM TITLE, ALSO DIVULGES INFORMATION ABOUT IT

As of right now, the next album is looking to be a similar effort to my other albums. I have a few songs that are going in a more tech-death direction, while others are going into a more melodic direction (Like Suspended Animation by JP). The next album is titled "A Dream of Sheep" and will contain a suite called Zombie Sheep Apocalypse. It will be made up of 3 movements.

I. Of Wool and Man
II. Bleet For Freedom
III. The Death of Ewe

Look for it to drop in late July, early August. More updates to come.

[ZBomber]

  Thats awesome! Can't wait! Any project time limit for the suite?

[Ultimetalhead]

Right now I'm thinking between 10-15 minutes, but these things tend to grow.

[bout to crash]

 

[Ultimetalhead]

I'm in that phase right now where things are starting to come together, and the structure is becoming much more apparent. I'm thinking right now that the album will have either 7 or 8 songs. I don't have titles for all of them, but I have some solid ideas for 6.

1. Class A Death Machine (Heavy, fast, quite technical)
2. (Experimental, in Eb Locrian of all things)
3. Softer song, kind of like Soothing Winds but a little different
4. (Experimental as well. Using a really cool effect on this one.)
5. (Buckethead influence, much more melodic)
6. Zombie Sheep Apocalypse (Little bit of everything. Going to be quite epic.)

If I released an album with just this stuff on it, it'd probably be around 35 minutes, so I'm definitely going to write more. I'll keep you guys posted. Still looking at late July for a release though.

[Quadrochosis]

I'm downloading all three of your albums, will check them out and report back later this week!

[ZBomber]

Awesome, Zombie Sheep sounds killer!

Can't wait to hear the experimental ones too, always refreshing to have a change of pace and try something new.

[Ultimetalhead]

Tracklisting up. I'm doing something a little differently this time and doing all the bass/drums first, then recording guitar all in one fell swoop. Should be interesting.

[ZBomber]

 

But you really gotta get better artwork.

[Ultimetalhead]

My artwork owns your soul. 

[Ultimetalhead]

Alright. There's going to be a little bit of a delay on the next one. I'm going to probably start doing backing tracks this week, but I'll be gone all of the week after. I'd like to get this album done before I have to get back to school. Expect it in Mid-August.

[Ultimetalhead]

So, in a response to ZBomber's harsh criticism of my artwork, I've employed Hyperplex to get me some badass art, and my GOD did he deliver.

[ScioPath]

Great stuff. Just downloaded it all. 

[Ultimetalhead]

Mark your calendars. Barring any major complications, the album will be released on October 15.

[Algo Fonix]

Downloaded it all and just started listening.  Dude, this stuff is pretty freakin' good.  Can't wait till the next album is released.   

[Ultimetalhead]

Album release is still a go for Friday. 4/7 songs recorded. Yes, Zombie Sheep is done. 

[Ultimetalhead]

Well, the time has finally come. A Dream of Sheep has been released to the general public. I don't want to fall into the artist's pitfall of saying that every new release is the best thing I've ever done, but I seriously believe it this time. I deliberately sat on this one a little bit longer to iron out some filler and make sure these songs are the best they can be. I believe this is a fully realized album that, while a little bit short, is extremely concise and consistent. I hope you enjoy it.

Death Machine: This song was the very first written for the album, full of thrashy riffs and a blistering solo. The song is about a giant mechanical behemoth which may or may not wield chainsaws.

Breakfast of Champions: A more experimental song. It's in D# locrian, which is a little bit out there (Nobody uses locrian very much, sadly) for some. Song's not really about anything, but I'm fond of the phrase.

Laser Tissue Eradication: Back to the full-on thrash attack. This song was written about a dental procedure my sister went through, where they incinerated her gums with lasers to let teeth through. I figured it was suitably brutal enough to write a song about.

The Machine Never Sleeps: Another experimental track. The intro is achieved using a very slow delay setting, allowing me to harmonize over myself. I love the way it sounds. The rest of the song is about a sentient machine bent on controlling humanity.

Absence of Light: This song was written after an extensive period of listening to Black Sabbath. The opening riff was the first thing I played, and the rest of the song followed. The ending tag was something written much later. The song alludes to the Black Sabbath influence. (Absence of light, black, get it?)

Vehicles of Self-Loathing: Ah yes, the odd times are strong in this one. Very Meshuggah inspired. Not really any specific theme for this one, but it sounded pretty angry and raging, so the title fits.

Zombie Sheep Apocalypse: This is, as they say, the one. The big epic that finishes off the album on the highest note possible. The title is a response to the horror-comedy film "Black Sheep". Watching it with DTF members, it was this night that I decided that my next album would be called A Dream of Sheep, and that the final song would be this one. It's about sheep taking over the world.

So, let me know what you think about this album. I'm sure as hell proud of it. 


 

[ScioPath]

[Dr. DTVT]

Three songs in, and I can definately hear the improvement in your style and understanding.  The "robo-shredding" that was in your early work is gone, and while it helped to use proper bass and drum tracks, you are definitely playing within them, which makes the overall listening experience enjoyable.  Would  to see you get with a real band to really flesh out your sound more.  I know, I know...you told me before - just sayin'.

[Ultimetalhead]

The funniest thing about your post is that I did actually manage to find a band. We don't sound half bad. We're not quite at the level of recording quite yet, but when we do I'll be sure to post it here. 

[skydivingninja]

downloading A Dream of Sheep right now.  Jesus, mediafire has a LOT of popups/likely ad/spyware.

[Ultimetalhead]

I've never had issues with mediafire. Mostly harmless ads I'd assume.

[Ultimetalhead]

Anyone else feel like giving some feedback?