Recent Reviews

April 2024

March 2024

February 2024

January 2024

[ More Music Reviews ]


The Banishment: Machine And Bone
The Banishment - Machine And Bone Album Art

The Banishment: Machine And Bone

Heavy Experimental/Industrial Rock
No Score

Facebook Twitter
Frontiers Music
Words: Craig Hartranft
Added: 07.03.2023 | Released: 10.03.2023

George Lynch (Lynch Mob, The End Machine, ex-Dokken) as a guitarist and songwriter has always been pushing himself into greater skills and new musical endeavors. His latest (and ongoing) venture, The Banishment, takes him into a musical direction beyond Dokken and Lynch Mob (for which most fans remember him). Formed in 2011 with musical programmer and multi-instrumentalist Joe Haze, The Banishment now includes vocalist Devix Szell whose resume also includes art, acting, directing, and producing. Machine And Bone, their debut album, includes guest vocals from Richard Patrick (Filter) and Tommy Victor (Prong).

The Banishment Click For Larger Image

The Banishment

To start, I'll be honest: The Banishment and their musical style is way outside my wheelhouse. Not sure how to describe it to my readers, I will describe it as best I can as heavy experimental industrial rock. Fleshing that out a bit, the music is hard, heavy, and sometimes foreboding. Having said that, some songs are subtle, subdued, and nuanced, especially in the vocals.


It's experimental in the sense that, I believe, Lynch and fellows want to push out the boundaries of their creativity. For instance, with Lynch's guitar work there is a bounty of expression that swings between familiarity (like blues) and organized chaos. Alternatively, instead of experimental, some my call this prog. As to the industrial nuance, you could simply fall back on electronica, samples, and programming. But what makes music industrial, well, again, it's not my thing.

Finally, the rock. This where a listener, who is in the same position as me, may find a common denominator. While the songs are stuffed with poly rhythms, odd tempos and time signatures, brazen experimentation, and quirky programming, there is some rock rhythm and groove that connects the arrangements like sinew to bone. If anything, between that essential foundation and the progish experimentalism, especially from Lynch, I could not stop listening.

Weird, huh?

I don't like industrial music, the vocals were quite strange, programming ain't my thing either. But I kept listening. You may too. Check out the videos and suspend your credulity. Also, you'll notice that I did not give this album a score. Basically, I have no point of reference to compare this album to anything else (because I don't listen to this type of music on a regular basis).



Support the Artist & Dangerdog Music Reviews: This title is available, with unlimited streaming, via an Amazon Music account.


CraigHartranft.net - New fiction, crime fiction by Craig Hartranft

Note: All Amazon advertising in this review first benefits the artist, then Craig Hartranft also receives a residual. Click, and thanks for your support.


The Take Away

I'll be honest: The Banishment and their musical style is way outside my wheelhouse. Not sure how to describe it to my readers, I will describe it as best I can as heavy experimental industrial rock. But I couldn't stop listening.

Find A Review

Alphabetical Index

a b c d e f g h i j
k l m n o p q r s t
u v w x y z #
New & Notable
Read the Cruzh: The Jungle Revolution Album Review

Three years have passed since Sweden's Cruzh dropped their second long-player, Tropical Thunder, also introducing their new singer, Alex Waghorn. Now the band returns with The Jungle Revolution ... [ Read More ]

Febraury 2024 Stats
  • Users: 5,129
  • New Users: 4,442
  • Sessions: 10,810
  • Engaged Sessions: 5,917
  • Engagement Rate: 54.74%

    • Source: Google Analytics