As if people haven't noticed yet, I am very enthusiastic about local music and unconventional genres. Today I present you both, as it is the CD release date of 9th Evolution's No Devil liveD oN album, which can be found on Bandcamp:
http://9thevolution.bandcamp.com/album/no-devil-lived-on
Hailing from Pinellas Park, 9th Evolution isn't a band, nor a musician, it's a catharsis. With many bands, you might say that an individual is the "mastermind" behind the band. That's not the way to describe Nick; Nick is 9th Evolution, or maybe 9th Evolution is Nick, depending on how you look at it. He is responsible for all of the writing, both music and lyrics, the recording, and every other component of the project. He has a live band to perform with, but make no mistake about it, this is Nick's heart and soul.
I saw 9th Evolution for the first time back in 2011 in Orlando at the Florida Underground Industrial Music Festival. I really enjoyed the show, so I picked up an album that ended up getting stolen that night. I didn't realize it was gone until about 4 A.M., long after just about everyone was gone, so there was no hope of buying another album. Much to my surprise, when I went and found their page online, The Life Atomic was available for download for free. Why? Nick felt it was more important to share his music than to profit from it. The music caught me, but the attitude reeled me in. This was not a hollow gesture or a one-off occurrence. Over the years it is a consistent 9E theme; Nick has eschewed labels to stand for his music. He wouldn't change his music because it would be asking to change himself, and his identity is far more important than being part of any label or sacrificing any of his artistic liberties, which I respect tremendously.
One thing you may also notice on the site's Bandcamp page is that he's put out three albums in the last three years. It's a reflection both of his dedication to his craft, and how personal the music is to him. Make no mistake about it, making an album for start to finish is an incredibly difficult process, especially to do in one year, and ESPECIALLY when you are doing it yourself. To replicate that three years running (and if you are a betting man/woman, I'd put my money on a fourth) just shows how much he cares about his craft. Despite the undoubtedly high level of stress to do this, it certainly serves as a release for him, too, and getting to the finish line truly validates all of the struggle along the way.
I am not prepared to give my assessment of the new album, as I have only listened to it once so far (but I have a long car ride ahead, so I get to spend some quality time with the album!), but my initial impression is positive and that the album continues to get stronger and stronger as you make your way down the track list. There's nothing more disappointing than an album that starts out strong and cannot sustain its level past the first five or six tracks, but rest assured you'll have no problems like that here. At the end of the day, I highly encourage others to take a listen and see what unadulterated music passion sounds like.
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