Infinity is the third solo album by Canadian musician Devin Townsend, and the first released under his real name. The album was released in October 1998 on Townsend's label, HevyDevy Records.
| Infinity | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 21, 1998 | |||
| Recorded | November 1997 – July 1998 | |||
| Studio | ||||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 46:41 | |||
| Label |
| |||
| Producer | Devin Townsend | |||
| Devin Townsend chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Devin Townsend overall chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Chronicles of Chaos | 6/10[1] |
Background edit
After the completion of Strapping Young Lad's extreme metal album City and his solo progressive rock release Ocean Machine: Biomech, Townsend began to approach a mental breakdown. "I started to see human beings as little lonesome, water based, pink meat," he explained, "life forms pushing air through themselves and making noises that the other little pieces of meat seemed to understand." In 1997, he checked himself into a mental-health hospital, where he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The diagnosis helped him understand where the two sides of his music were coming from; he felt his disorder "gave birth to the two extremes that are Strapping's City record and Ocean Machine's Biomech."[2]
After being discharged from the hospital, Townsend found that "everything just clicked" and he was able to write his third solo album, Infinity, which he described as "the parent project" of City and Biomech.[2] Townsend returned to the studio, accompanied by drummer Gene Hoglan, to work on the album, on which Townsend played most of the instruments. During the recording sessions, Devin slept on the studio floor.[3] Devin has claimed Infinity was partly inspired by experimentation with LSD and other psychedelic drugs.[4]
A music video was made for the song "Christeen".[5]
Music edit
The first two minutes of the track "OM" have occasionally been played live as an intro of sorts to other songs, and were demoed for inclusion on Addicted (later appearing on Contain Us). The "Infinite Waltz" section of "Processional" was later used as the outro to "The Mighty Masturbator" from Deconstruction. The track "Truth" was re-recorded for Transcendence, the seventh studio album by the Devin Townsend Project. "OM" was played live in its entirety in 2017 at the Ancient Roman Theater in Plovdiv. The entirety of the album was played in sequence, along with outtakes Om, Sit in the Mountain, and Processional, in a ticketed live stream concert on February 5, 2022 as part of the Quarantine Concert Series.[6]
Release edit
Infinity was released in October 1998 on Townsend's independent label, HevyDevy Records. It was distributed in Canada by HevyDevy, in Japan by Sony, and in Europe initially by USG Records and later on by InsideOut and with three bonus tracks.
Track listing edit
The InsideOut release of Infinity had different titles for several tracks; these are listed in parentheses. The InsideOut release of Infinity also contained three bonus tracks.
All tracks are written by Devin Townsend, except "Christeen" by Townsend and Ginger
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Truth" | 3:58 |
| 2. | "Christeen" | 3:41 |
| 3. | "Bad Devil" | 4:52 |
| 4. | "War" | 6:29 |
| 5. | "Soul Driven" ("Soul Driven Cadillac") | 5:14 |
| 6. | "Ants" | 2:01 |
| 7. | "Colonial Boy" ("Wild Colonial Boy") | 3:04 |
| 8. | "Dynamics" ("Life Is All Dynamics") | 5:08 |
| 9. | "Unity" | 6:07 |
| 10. | "Noisy Pink Bubbles" | 5:22 |
| Total length: | 46:41 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Sister" (Live acoustic version) | 2:15 |
| 12. | "Hide Nowhere" (Live acoustic version) | 5:03 |
| 13. | "Man" ('96 Demo) | 5:12 |
| Total length: | 59:11 | |
The original track listing intended for Infinity was different from its final release. Due to the record label's time restraints, Townsend could not finish some of the tracks. These were later included on the Christeen + Four Demos EP. The original track list was:[7]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Truth" | 3:58 |
| 2. | "Processional"
| 11:42 |
| 3. | "Christeen" | 3:41 |
| 4. | "War" | 6:29 |
| 5. | "Soul Driven" | 5:14 |
| 6. | "Om" | 6:18 |
| 7. | "Dynamics" | 5:08 |
| 8. | "Unity" | 6:07 |
| Total length: | 48:37 | |
Personnel edit
Music edit
- Devin Townsend – vocals, guitar, bass, keyboards, programming
- Gene Hoglan – drums
- Christian Olde Wolbers – upright bass
- Andy Codrington – trombone
- Erin Townsend, Lyn Townsend, Dave Townsend, Naomi, Tanya Evans, Lara Uthoff, Chris Valagao, Brad Jackson, Jennifer Lewis – additional vocals
- Jamie Meyer - piano solo (track 3)
Production edit
- Devin Townsend – production, recording, engineering, mixing, digital editing, digital assembly
- Mark Gordon – bass engineering
- Matteo Caratozzolo – assistance, digital editing
- Mark Gordon – assistance
- Byron Stroud – assistance
- Marty Schwartz – assistance
- Ross Gale – assistance
- Ramon Donati – assistance
- Scott Ternan – assistance
- Pete Wonsiak – mixing, additional recording
- Matteo Caratozzolo – additional recording
- Jennifer Lewis – digital editing
- Jamie Meyer – digital assembly
- Brett Anthony – digital assembly
- Greg Reely – mastering
- Tracy Turner – management
Artwork edit
- Mille Thorsen – layout and design
- Aaron Mason – photography
Chart performance edit
| Chart (1998) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Oricon (Japan)[8] | 29 |
| Chart (2023) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[9] | 19 |
References edit
- ^ Schwarz, Paul (January 16, 1999) http://www.chroniclesofchaos.com/reviews/albums/2-1064_devin_townsend_infinity.aspx" Chronicles of Chaos.
- ^ a b Ingham, Chris (1998). "Metal Hammer Interviews Devin". Far Beyond Metal. Archived from the original on 2007-05-22. Retrieved 2007-11-21.
- ^ "Devin Townsend: 'I Wanna be Part of Something. I Don't Wanna be the Thing' | Interviews @ Ultimate-Guitar.Com". Archived from the original on 2014-12-25. Retrieved 2014-12-25.
- ^ "- YouTube". YouTube.[dead YouTube link]
- ^ "Devin Townsend - Christeen + 4 Demos". hevydevy.com. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
- ^ "Devin Townsend Setlist at Shoreline Studios, Vancouver". setlist.fm.
- ^ "FAQ". HevyDevy Records. Archived from the original on 2009-02-19.
- ^ (in Japanese) "∞（インフィニティ）/デビン・タウンゼンド." Oricon. Retrieved June 1, 2009.
- ^ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 1, 2023.