Well, this is it, folks; the last of the Voivod material. As you’ve probably read in every single review of Infini, these were the riffs recorded by the late/great Piggy and turned into the 13 songs comprising this final album. It is the capstone to a quarter century of greatness. Keep in mind that the guitar tracks used are exactly as they were recorded; no touch ups, no overdubs, no nothing! If you enjoyed the generally straight forward, though still askew, song structuring of Katorz (as I did), then you’ll more than likely enjoy Infini.

Infini is not a perfect album and it would have flowed better if a few of the mediocre tunes were eliminated, but by and large, it represents the modern day sound of Voivod that you’ve come to accept, even adore. Compositionally complex it is not; there are actual choruses and verse patterns that are easily digested, as was the case on Katorz. However, that doesn’t mean the album is not chock full of Piggy’s left-of-center riffs nor does it mean that the band’s patented quirkiness and flirtations with dissonance have been left behind. One of a handful of highlights, “Earthache” features just such a quirky, slanted riff, a growling Newsted bass line, and a searing solo, while “A Room with a V.U.” has an oddly appealing chorus melody and a loping rhythm. In fact, several tunes are notable for the band’s ability to incorporate Piggy’s ideas into songs with substance and alluring strangeness (“Destroy after Reading,” “Krap Radio,” “Global Warning”). As alluded to above, a handful tunes (e.g. “Treasure Chase,” In Orbit,” “Pyramidome”) move dangerously close to filler, but aren’t atrocious either.

It is the opening and closing tunes – “God Phones” and “Volcano” – that are the undisputed classic Voivod-ian booty kickers of Infini. The former in particular has a melody so unique to the Voivod style, right down to Snake’s sort-of-nasal-sort-of-lazy vocals, as well as patterns that you just can’t get out of your head. It even boasts a changeup that sounds a heck of a lot like Bronze-era Motorhead, inclusive of some very Lemmy-esque lyrics (“came to rock ‘n roll, came to steal your souls,” etc). And “Volcano” is nothing but a full-on Voivod thrasher with a cool Newsted bass-line intro and a riff that hooks you in from the get-go.

The short of it is that Infini is a fine way to bring Voivod’s chapter in the Book of Heavy Metal to a close. So what if it ain’t all that and a bag of chips, as you hip folks might say. Isn’t “all that” enough? Americans could stand to eat healthier anyway.

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