Necrotica "In some cultures, Mars symbolizes war and Sirius peace. I'm simplifying! It is a journey of a state of war, even if in France we are preserved, but it can be a war within us, in our flesh, in our mind, a war with ourselves" -Joe Duplantier, 2005

I think we need to take a moment to appreciate just how appropriate the cover art for From Mars to Sirius is to the music within. Gojira have never been ones to shy away from environmental themes, which they’d been exploring as early as 2001’s Terra Incognita. But the illustration of a whale travelling to a more peaceful world takes us right to the heart of their beliefs and ideals. As such, it also represents the first proper concept album for Gojira - one that relates the issues we face on a planetary scale to the greater concept of mortality. This relationship between internal conflict and external repercussions is what elevates From Mars to Sirius above the band’s previous outings; they already had the ingredients to make an era-defining album, yet they never could put them all together in such a stunning way until this record.

From Mars to Sirius is the product of several influences - Meshuggah, Pantera, Morbid Angel, Converge, and several others come to mind - but it doesn’t feel derivative in the slightest. It’s a testament to how well Gojira can use their own building blocks to their advantage, as the personality and charm of the record compliment the crushing riffs and harsh vocals perfectly. And when I say crushing, I do mean crushing. Despite most of the songs being in standard D tuning, they manage to crank out a thicker and weightier sound than most of the deathcore and djent bands playing in much lower tunings. This can largely be attributed to the presence of the underrated Jean-Michel Labadie, whose bass work provides a wonderfully heavy undertow to Joe Duplantier and Christian Andreu’s relentless guitar assaults. Combined with the technical and highly impressive drumming of Joe’s brother Mario, there’s always the sense that the band is just “locked in”, no matter how much the album threatens to go off the rails. The chemistry here is undeniable, and it’s pretty easy to guess why the group haven’t had a lineup change since their very first record.

But a lot of this can be said about the previous two records as well. What really puts From Mars to Sirius in a higher echelon is the incredible focus that went into the songwriting. It is true that a few parts can meander once in a while - the 66-minute runtime could have been trimmed by about five minutes or so - but when the band are firing on all cylinders, the result is both brutally heavy and utterly entrancing. “Ocean Planet” immediately sets the scene, as faint whale calls are met with a grinding sludge-oriented riff; doomy, yet captivating and even melodic. This song tells us a lot about the album we’re about to hear: pounding riffs combined with a heavy dose of atmosphere, near-pristine production values, and the band’s most ambitious lyrics to date. That’s not to say their technical abilities have waned in the slightest though, as heard in more turbulent cuts such as absolute barnburners “The Heaviest Matter in the Universe” and “Backbone” or the epic, progressive stylings of album centerpiece “Flying Whales.” The latter is especially noteworthy as it really puts every facet of the band’s sound on display. The beginning sees us traversing a beautiful soundscape filled with the aforementioned whale calls, before plunging us into some of the heaviest grooves on the entire album; finally, the last section of the track throws in all the weird time signatures and varied rhythms to seal the deal. The whole song is like a summary of the band’s career, and it’s no wonder that it’s their most famous tune to this day.

While we’re talking about songwriting, it’s crucial to talk about just how well the lyrics and concept compliment the music itself. Not only does From Mars to Sirius tackle the theme of moving to a more peaceful place, but it also concerns the resurrection of the world we currently live in. While the heavier songs obviously present the more turbulent and intense moments of this “interplanetary quest” as it’s been dubbed, there are also slower tracks that present a more contemplative side. “World to Come” is very true to its title, using doomy melodic riffs and beautiful lead guitar playing to illustrate what our planet might eventually become, depending on the way we treat it. “Global Warming” hits a lot of the same lyrical notes while presenting a more hopeful tone, as the repetition of the words “we will see our children growing” closes out the record as a whole. Add to that some nice (if a tad repetitive) guitar tapping from our Duplantier/Andreu duo, and it’s a nice way to resolve a lot of the tension and conflicts of the story. And quite a few of the songs, such as “In the Wilderness” and “From the Sky”, seem to paradoxically marry brutal music with contemplative lyrics effortlessly. The band’s ability to blend so many disparate elements without sounding sloppy is really impressive, especially considering the ambition of this project.

That’s really what makes From Mars to Sirius one of the benchmarks for modern metal. It’s such a varied experience, yet it never strays too far from its core appeal. The riffs are brutal, the themes are thought-provoking, the songwriting is progressive and ambitious, the atmosphere is thick, the playing is super tight… and somehow all of this converges into one incredible experience. If you enjoy modern extreme metal or progressive metal, you owe it to yourself to listen to From Mars to Sirius at least once. Then again, given Gojira’s rapidly-increasing stature in today’s metal scene, chances are that you've probably heard it already.

UMUR "From Mars to Sirius" is the 3rd full-length studio album by French progressive death/thrash metal act Gojira. The album was released through Listenable/Prosthetic Records in September 2005. It´s the successor to "The Link" from 2003. While "The Link (2003)" had already made the world well aware of who Gojira were, "From Mars to Sirius" further helped raise the band´s profile on the metal scene. They took the successful formula of the predecessor and expanded upon it. When listening to the stylistic development between the first three Gojira albums, it´s obvious the band were going through a fast moving development process and "From Mars to Sirius" was the culmination of the early stage of the band´s career. The next upward step to greatness and success.

Stylistically the music on "From Mars to Sirius" is technically well played and progressive death/thrash metal. The main vocal style is raw shouting/semi-growling, but there are sections featuring clean vocals on the album too. The music is rooted in the groove laden part of the thrash metal movement of the 90s and artists like Sepultura, (early) Meshuggah, and Machine Head, but there are some death metal traits in the music too. Considering all the heavy and sharp riffs and rhythms featured on the album, "From Mars to Sirius" is actually a very atmospheric release though. There´s often a melancholic "the world will go down the drain if we don´t do something to stop the environmental issues and world conflicts" type atmosphere present, and I´m reminded of an artist like Killing Joke. So the various elements which make up the whole, aren´t necessarily that original, but the way the elements are combined and the tracks are constructed, provide Gojira with a relatively unique sound.

Highlights include tracks like "Backbone", "Where Dragons Fall", "The Heaviest Matter of the Universe", and "To Sirius", but "From Mars to Sirius" is a highly consistent release. It´s both a positive and a negative, but more about that in the conclusion below.

The musicianship is on a high level on all posts. Gojira are obviously very skilled, but they are also passionate about delivering their music and that´s audible too. "From Mars to Sirius" features a powerful, detailed, and well sounding production, which suits the material perfectly. So upon conclusion it´s a high quality release by Gojira. Featuring 12 tracks and a full playing time of 66:58 minutes it outstays its welcome a bit and a few tracks could have been left off the album and it would most likely have been a little more concise and "sharp", but as it is, it´s still a great quality release and the extra minutes of playing time is a minor issue. A 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

Phonebook Eater 8/10

"From Mars To Sirius" is Gojira's best release so far: a modern Death Metal classic.

Gojira are one of the main Progressive Death Metal acts of the new millennium also because of “From Mars To Sirius”, the extraordinary third album. This French band had been active for nine years before this release, but it is known that great albums take time and a certain level of maturity.

Compared to earlier albums, “From Mars To Sirius” has a much rougher production: everything sounds incredibly large, wide, and spacey in this album, contrasting the tight compositions of the early days. Even the technical point of view has toned down quite a bit, in favor of a more sludgy take on Death Metal: the guitars are strongly reminiscent of bands like Mastodon, Neurosis, or Isis. But the typical Gojira vocals, by Joe Duplianter, never leave the stage, and still give that touch that brings together all releases from the band.

The album presents a bunch of solid, well-written and executed songs that, put together, maintain a strongly consistent level throughout the entire hour this albums lasts: the more famous, classic Gojira songs like the Post-Metal vibes of “Flying Whales”, the fiercely dramatic guitar tapping of “Global Warming”, or the energetic “From The Sky” are stuck into the imaginary collective of modern Death Metal. But the other songs present here are not less powerful: “Ocean Planet”, the album’s opener, is an almost devastatingly executed song with one of the sludgiest riffs of the entire LP, “World To Come” and “Oceanbone” simple songs with excellent riffs and songwriting. The more technical, thrashy moments are still present here and there, like in “The Heaviest Matter Of The Universe”, one of the most intense songs Gojira has ever created.

An album with little imperfections, with a tremendously engaging flow, and with a consistent high level of execution, “From Mars to Sirius” shows all of Gojra’s talent, and remains a key album for Progressive Death Metal.

Xaxaar Since this album has a score of 2.71, I feel almost like it's an obligation that I write a review to bump it up a few points. I feel like this is Gojira's best album and to see it being the worst is, well, wrong...to me. Well, let's see if this review actually matters, shall we? This review is going to be one of those annoying "song by song" ones, 'cause that's what I do best.

Ocean Planet - Not exactly a roaring start for the album, but it is still not a bad song. It still definitely has its moments, but it does take a while for the song to get good. This song is definitely outmatched by most of the other songs on the album, though.

Backbon - Now this is what the whole album's about. This is truly a great song. It opens up with a very heavy riff and then later transverses into blast beats and THEN goes into the fast riff with double bass underneath. I think all these riffs sound excellent together, transitioning beautifully.

From the Sky - I know you're looking at the rating I gave the album and then at the individual songs and wondering "how?," but I promise it gets better from here. This is just the worst song off the album, the filler of the album if you will. Not a terrible song, just not really providing anything new to the album.

Unicorn - This was a hard song to give a rating to, but I gave it a four just because it's, well...nice. After the intense, heavy riffs of the first three songs, it's just nice to take a breather for a while to prepare you for the rest of the album ahead.

Where Dragons Dwell - A nice transition from the oh so peaceful song into another double bass fest. It actually has quite a pleasant riff to go along with its more heavier moments of the song. Just a very good over all song. The fade out at the end of the song is also very musical and a very welcome addition to this otherwise short song.

The Heaviest Matter in the Universe - This song, for lack of a better term, is just all over the place, but in a very good way. One of the more, if not the most, interesting songs on the album. The clean vocal section is also something to be appreciative of.

Flying Whales - The staple song off the album. Starts off with a mellow intro, but then just hits ya with that riff and then the song just starts to take off. This song has a very nice portion of heaviness to it and if you going to decide if you should hear this album or not, this song should be the one that persuades you.

In the Wilderness - This song is one of the better songs on the side of drumming and vocals. The format is very similar to Where Dragons Dwell as they both have the long outro that fades out, but I enjoy both very much so this isn't an issue for me. The reason why it's not 5 stars is because I'm not in love with the most played riff and the middle of the song is rather bland 'cause of this, but still by no means bad; in fact, very good!

World to Com - This definitely an interesting one; almost two separate songs in one. The reason why I like this song so much is just how unique it is. How odd it is in the rest of the context album and the song structure of it all. It's just an interesting song, holding your attention on to the album s'more.

From Mars (and) To Sirius - "From Mars" is the intro song to "To Sirius," kinda like how "Parabol" is the intro song to "Parabola" on Lateralus. The two songs compliment each other very well and I think "From Mars" is an excellent appetizer for the main course. Now focusing on "To Sirius" it opens up with a odd time signature riff, but by no means too odd. It's just a nice mix that keeps it even more interesting. Then the song eventually climaxes into a blast beat segment and, as you can imagine, ends with a fade out. A very excellent song.

Global Warming - A surprisingly great song. The whole song is practically made up of tapping riffs, but it also has a heavy segment as well. I also really enjoy the lyrics to this song as you should probably hear it with a page open to read along. It's probably the most emotional song off the album and I think they pull it off magnificently. An excellent closer to an excellent album.

Here's hoping that the review bumps up the album!

topofsm Plod. Plod. Plod.

While "From Mars to Sirius" is indeed heavy to the extreme, that seems to be the only thing going for it. Everything else is pretty much slow paced pseudo death-like progressive metal. Not that the tempi of the songs are slow, but development and composition are. Riffs overstay their welcome and the mood of the album rarely deviates.

The sound of this album, though, is pretty unique. The guitars are heavy and atmospheric at the same time, sounding somewhat like Strapping Young Lad without the over the top attitude or synths. There is some Meshuggah influence, though the technicality lies in the technique to play riffs and runs, rather than any time signature acrobatics. The vocalist is interesting, and while offering some death growls also contributes a very harsh singing voice.

Of course, with this album you're subjected to an hour of pretty much breakneck heavy riff after breakneck heavy riff. Elements seem to blend together and memorability is thrown out the window. There are few standouts. The sludgy opener "Ocean Planet" would be one, which is again crushing and contains some top quality pinches that evoke the sound of a whale. "The Heaviest Matter in the Universe" is also notable, containing some riffs that will stay with the listener (something few of the other tracks can do).

Ultimately, this album is lacking. It's an hour of "whatever" and you're not going to find anything catchy or compelling unless you are a fan. Maybe it would be better for a new fan to start from somewhere else, or find a release by Strapping Young Lad or Meshuggah to quell their appetite for music like this.