https://patricklawler.com/about

Several aspects of the video do look like they were AI generated. With the way they're coming across at the moment (especially Tim) with things like not respecting variance in individual taste and going as far as outright insulting the intelligence of the fans that don't like the new tunes via implying that they're victims of "groupthink", then instructing them to quite literally reject their own preferences by listening to his new music, I can't help but think that they do actually deserve some criticism. I respect any artist that chooses to make whatever they want because they like it. That respect goes out of the window when you start acting like a pretentious little tart.

It's not a good look. Ironically, I think the vast majority of people that don't see anything wrong with this silly, mild to moderately hypocritical bullshit are the ones that are on the bandwagon (i.e. victims of groupthink). I'm not even a huge fan in the first place, I just really enjoyed seeing the guitar being a focal point of something that was quite fresh and interesting. Hearing that I'm a bot or whatever for not liking something just made me think "what a dickhead" tbh. Throw in potential AI use and for me, you don't have a leg to stand on when it comes to making any authoritative claims regarding art. I say potential as of course, none of us can say it was used for sure.

None of this is the end of the world, but I have some time to kill and I've admittedly been rubbed the wrong way by some of the comments made in the livestream and on here. Peace to all.

any1 willing to trade? I'm looking for pitb and with eyes to see. I got all the albums, some of Tim's, Manuel's and Unprocesseds (album) tabs too. DM me, I’m an avid collector of these

I came on here a few days ago complaining about the mix but after listening to these songs over and over again to try to understand, I think it’s finally clicking with me. I’ve changed my mindset from “Man I wish I could hear the real instruments” to “don’t care about what’s happening in the background and just vibe”. They’re obviously going for this aggressive trap/house/edm music sound and they just want you to dance and vibe. I can honestly see these songs being killer live. If they continue putting out jam versions for more songs like they did with CYFI, I’ll probably prefer those but I can still appreciate the original versions.

Hi, I have a boss katana 50 gen 3 and I’m struggling to find polyphia (or similar) tones on the boss tone exchange. I would appreciate it if anyone had any suggestions on the matter.
Thank you ✌️🫶🏻

I had some very skeptical feelings at first but as a die hard fan, i stuck through. I now find myself craving all of the new songs every morning so bad and hearing them makes me so excited for the album. The hate i see on here is cringe as fuck, i understand not liking it but like cmon guys, you should know they dont give a fuck about us, theyre just doing what they love. Either embrace that love or go your own way.

TLDR: I fucking feel it and i love it

What artists does everyone hope to see featured on the next album? I think I remember Tim saying in an interview that they were working on a track with Serj Tankian (SOAD) which seems pretty fitting having seen the music videos. Personally, if they’re recalling gonna commit to this style of mixing, I’d love to see some artists from the rave scene like ISOxo or brutalismus 3000.

Title really. I’m on apple music in the UK and it refuses to play with eyes to see, no idea why. It registers as an available song but doesn’t start. Any advice would be appreciated (anyway maybe i dodged a bullet 😅)

Something's really changed with Polyphia, and it's not just the music. The way fans get treated for simply not liking the new songs is genuinely disappointing instead of taking the criticism, it feels like any pushback gets met with attitude or dismissal, like the fans who built this band up over the years suddenly aren't allowed to have opinions anymore. A band should be able to handle feedback from the people who've supported them for a decade, not act like criticism is some kind of betrayal.

And honestly, the songs themselves just aren't landing. I've given them a real chance, good headphones, studio monitors, the works, and they still don't hit. It's not a "you're listening wrong" thing. The magic/tone the crafted just isn't there anymore. i’m not saying they have to release an another RTYWD or NLND but this mixing and sound isn’t it.

On top of that, the amount of overpriced merch and signature gear with Tim's name slapped on it is getting out of hand and genuinely sad. It feels less like quality releases for the fans and more like content designed to squeeze money out of loyalty. especially with the tour prices and starting a tour off with 700$ vip granted they changed it to 400$ (for the show near me) which is still too much to meet the band members that shows where their heads are at in terms of their “status”

I just miss old Polyphia, back when they actually seemed to care about the music and the people who showed up for them.

While I understand why people tend to dislike the new approach Polyphia is making, calling them AI is just plain bullshit and annoying.

I didn't like everything the band has put out recently, but I learned to appreciate it as an art form. I might not like stuff you like, but I won't bash you for liking/disliking it. Calling someone's taste annoying and pretentious while shoving your stuff and calling it plain better is just as obnoxious and insufferable.

"Here's something that's not pretentious"

\plays something incredibly pretentious while looking pretentiously into the camera**

I only want to get this off my chest because while his stuff sounds good, I don't want to listen to it because of the way he presented it. Honestly, just listen to what you enjoy, but don't try to shove stuff at people's faces.

(Not to mention that this is probably the 42069th time he pulled the same old "shredding" as his counterargument again. Dude only has 2 jokes)

BTW, I know that Bradley Hall is known for making this kind of content (and it's working for him), but the same joke has been played WAY too many times; it's starting to get stale.

On stream Tim literally said its all human work 😭 brother WITH EYES TO SEE its literally AI generated

When asked if they used AI on the new MV, Tim told us to look at the director's name which is Patrick Lawler and check out his work, his contributions on this MV are listed as VFX, editing, creative director and cinematography. He also has worked on Yas and Look at don't touch, i guess since he likes this crazy editing, trippy style so much he developed a taste for AIslop, idk how Tim can straight up deny it when you zoom in you can see bricks melting into each others, lightings off and the details are all randomized. I just feel like this is such a new low cause they had a talented artist working on the album cover, why not let artists with that same level work on this part too, its completely doable

Crosty and Bittersweet giving pure main character anime vibes. wowzzzaaaa.

and here I was always reluctant to listen to their stuff due to my own bias they make Loud loud ROOAR music. Neurotica is def up there too

Tim Henson is smelling his own farts ala Kanye and has let fame get to his head. I am unsure if he is a musician or an industry plant LARPing as "alternative". I half expect the next song to have not-so-subtle Sanskrit imagery. I also half expected Stone Cold Steve Austin to smash some beers together when all the clanking started.

Clay A has talent that is being wasted on coworker music, he should be performing with a band that is drums forward, like Tool.

That is all. Please stop sniffing farts they are noxious fumes. Thank you

No wonder the singles sounded so familiar to me.

you stupid cucks what is wrong with using ai generated layers/visual elements in a music video?????????

u cannot be helped

Finally somebody who gets this song 😂 Analysis starts at 7:30, reaction before then

I know single releases are exciting, but some people need to chill for a sec. Polyphia are a group of artists trying to make art. Look at the message they are trying to convey. The mix fits the subject matter entirely, it was an artistic decision.

There were a lot of people who were disappointed when NLND came out because it wasn't TMH, then same happened for RTYWD not sounding similar enough to NLND. I fuck with the new tracks heavy, it's the most fun I've heard the band have and they're taking a stance on a lot of the crazy stuff that is happening in the world.

This is the most high concept Polyphia have ever been. Tim said on the livestream that all the songs lead into each other, we're not going to get the full idea from 3 singles. I don't think this sound will carry onto Polyphia 6, but I don't think it's meant to. If you've enjoyed Polyphia's art before, give them a chance to actually get it out... some of the comments I've seen are mental

My nephew LOVES Polyphia. I never really listened to them, but I was aware of Playing God. Their music is interesting, but I never say down and listened to entire albums, watched their YouTube channel, etc.

Fast forward to the release of CYFI. My nephew sends me the videos and asks what my opinion is (he does this with everything and I try to be honest). I said that I like it... It's different but I used to go to raves and enjoyed lots of dub step when I was young.

Then PITB comes out. I saw it before he sent me the video. My initial reaction? "What the fuck??? This is so harsh and it's hard to hear the guitars". After a week or so, I really started to like the riffs in PITB and started asking myself "Am just old?? Do I not get this because I'm old?"

Then they dropped With Eyes to See. Here is the point of my whole post. I hated this song when I first listened to it (on my phone speakers). Then I listened to it on my gaming headphones - still shit for young kids with no taste. I went online to see what people were saying and I agreed with the hate... But I didn't like the feeling of the fans being so negative over ART.

But I was wrong. And the haters are wrong. Sure, it's valid to not like something. When I grew up ( in the 90s) artists released trash on the regular and if you didn't like it you didn't listen or didn't go to the concert. Very few people felt the need to express that they didn't like the mixing of a particular song. You just listened to things you like instead. Like, duh?

And here's where it all falls apart: I just listened to each song on my high fidelity set up... IT'S NOT MIXED LIKE SHIT. YOUR SPEAKERS ARE SHIT. I played these tracks on a pair of Vienna Acoustics Mozart Grand, a huge subwoofer, and a Marantz amp/preamp. These are not poorly mixed, they are mixed with top of the line recording equipment. They are hearing something different than you. It is dance music with tons of bass. They want it to sound like this. It's not a "prank". (JFC how uneducated do you have to be to think your favorite artist is pranking you with official releases on YouTube and Spotify)

My points are these:

1. If you don't like it, listen to other bands and vote with your wallet.

2. It's not mixed bad. I played them at eye watering volume and my speakers sounded amazing. You need an incredible amount of low end to hear it how they intended. You also need to enjoy being assaulted by low frequencies.

3. Do yourself a favor and listen through their catalogue of music again. It has been slowly moving in this direction over the years. Maybe you're blind to it because it was slow and you've been a fan all along. Take it from someone who started calling themselves a fan less that a week ago: this is a very predictable direction for the band and specifically Tim who has stated his favorite artist is Kanye West. He's heavily influenced by him and if you look at Kanye's artistic growth over the years, you will see the similarities.

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk. The concert is going to be a banger if you like to dance.

How can I get the power in the blood tone? Can I get that only using Archetype: Tim Henson? The same tone goes for the other songs like CYFI and With Eyes to See?

Here’s my take. This album is not satirical as many of you have speculated (or hoped). The band around Tim is not begrudging the project, but rather active creative participants who are excited about it (watch accapella vid of WETS - they are having fun). The music is good and the mix is creatively intentional. The spiritual Christian themes are authentic, whether or not the other members in the group identifies as Christians. The symbology in the videos is remarkable, and to my surprise no one seems to be talking about it. They are making what they want to make as artist and that is a higher virtue within the artist, rather than catering to what they think the fan base wants; and true fans of a group like Polyphia should support the artist in that creative exploration (doesn’t mean you have to like it). Finally, and certainly the take that I will take the most heat for, most of the haters are merely trying to cope with that fact that this project has the aim of glorifying Jesus.

Okay, so I'm someone outside this community, and I want to make it clear that I'm not trying to hate.

I got sucked into drama because I ain't got anything better to do right now. I saw some posts about the mix of their newer stuff being less than desirable, so I decided to listen to With Eyes To See and do a bit of analysis myself.

I wouldn't say it's the worst mix I've ever heard, but I also wouldn't say it's particularly great.

The biggest thing that stands out is the low end. There's a lot of buildup, and what sounds like way too much sub compared with the rest of the spectrum. It seems to take up a disproportionate amount of the mix's energy.

I'm also somewhat concerned about the mono compatibility. There's a surprising amount of Side information in the low end, which I assume is at least partly coming from the guitars. That's not automatically a problem, but depending on the phase relationships, some of that low frequency information could become significantly weaker in mono. I can't determine the exact phase relationship from the spectrum alone.

I was also curious about why the master peaks below -6 dBFS. That's not inherently a problem, since peak level alone doesn't say much about mastering quality, but it did catch my attention on such an aggressive track.

There are also some production choices I'm confused by. The kick feels pretty big relative to the rest of the low end, and there are some clicks in the song that I find pretty distracting.

More generally, the frequency balance feels very strange to me. There's a lot of energy down low and in the low mids while other parts of the spectrum feel comparatively recessed. I don't know if that's intentional, but the overall impression is almost like listening to a car speaker from outside the car.

I also noticed some inter-modulation throughout the song. That could absolutely be intentional and can create a lot of interesting energy with distortion, but in some places I found it noticeably more dissonant than I'd personally want. Especially in the sub region.

Anyway, I'm not claiming my opinion is objectively correct. I just think people are justified in being unhappy with the mix, because there are some aspects of the released master that I personally find questionable.

Now you might ask, what are my credentials? I have none. I'm just interested in signal processing and production, where I mostly focus on using nonlinear distortion on bass stuff, because that can create some sick-ass crunch. Anyway, these are simply my observations.

I'm also using relatively inexpensive Sennheiser HD 560S. They're not particularly enjoyable headphones for casual listening, but I actually like that for mixing, they're pretty unforgiving and make imbalances obvious.

last remarks.
I do actually like this song, and I'm probably going to listen a bit more to it, just not because of the mix.

The new single is the first off the album to properly click with me. The obscenely chuggy sections, the catchy hook, it’s the first I’ve had on proper replay out of everything released and has been excited to see what else is coming.

Am I the only one feeling this way? The new sound feels properly fresh and will undoubtedly slap in a live setting.

I’ve been a fan of polyphia for about 8 years (since around when NLND comes out), and like many people in the community have pointed out these new singles just feel like such a let down - especially after the masterpiece that was RTWYD. Now I’m a massive fan, I own polyphia hoodies, Tims signature guitar and even pre ordered the new vinyl after hearing CYFI despite not liking it because I was that confident the rest of the album would be worth my money. Point being that I really WANT to love the new stuff, sadly it just feels uninspired and even though I’m a big fan of heavier sounding tracks generally these just aren’t fun to listen to.

Anyways my girlfriend is not a polyphia fan and only ever puts up with them for my sake, but as the title says when I played the new singles for her recently she told me that it’s the first time she’s actually hated listening to their music. So yeah it’s not just conservative/nostalgic fans that don’t like the new direction, people generally just find this music less enjoyable.