Disguise (album)

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Disguise
Studio album by
ReleasedJune 7, 2019 (2019-06-07)
RecordedMay 2018–March 2019
Genre
Length42:31
Producer * Chris "Motionless" Cerulli
Motionless in White chronology
Graveyard Shift
(2017)
Disguise
(2019)
Scoring the End of the World
(2022)
Singles from Disguise
  1. "Disguise"
    Released: April 17, 2019
  2. "Brand New Numb"
    Released: April 17, 2019
  3. "Undead Ahead 2: The Tale of the Midnight Ride"
    Released: May 10, 2019
  4. "Another Life"
    Released: January 21, 2020

Disguise is the fifth studio album by American metalcore band Motionless in White. It was released on June 7, 2019, through Roadrunner Records and was produced by Drew Fulk and Chris "Motionless" Cerulli. It is the second release on a major label since the band's departure from Fearless Records.[4] The album's tracklist was revealed on April 17 together with the release of the two singles, "Disguise", which had been premiered at Earthday Birthday in Orlando a few days prior, and "Brand New Numb".[5] It is the band's first album with Vinny Mauro on drums and former Ice Nine Kills bassist Justin Morrow (although credited, neither of them perform on the album), who replaced Devin "Ghost" Sola on bass guitar, as well as the first album not to feature Josh Balz on keyboards.

Background and promotion[edit]

On May 6, 2018, Chris Motionless announced via Instagram that a new album would be released in 2019. He claimed that he, along with Ryan Sitkowski and Ricky Olson, would begin full-time writing prior to touring with Warped Tour that summer.

On April 17, the band announced the album was to be titled Disguise. On the same day, they released two singles off of the album titled "Disguise" and "Brand New Numb", along with the tracklist and official artwork created by Zach Dunn.[5]

On May 10, the band released their third single "Undead Ahead 2: The Tale of the Midnight Ride" and its corresponding music video.[6]

On June 5, two days before the album was due to drop, the band premiered the song "Thoughts & Prayers" on BBC's Radio 1's Rock Show with Daniel P. Carter.

The song "Brand New Numb" was featured in NHL 20.

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Already Heard[1]
Dead Press!4/10[3]
Distorted Sound7/10[7]
Sputnikmusic[8]
Wall of Sound[2]

Disguise received mixed reviews from several music critics. Ian Kenworthy of Already Heard gave the album 3.5 out of 5 and said: "At its best, Disguise delivers a fun bucketload of goth-flavoured metalcore mayhem. However, it sags in places, especially when they step outside their comfort zone."[1] Carlos Zelaya of Dead Press! scored the album 4/10 stating: "For their fifth album, Disguise, you pretty much know what to expect at this point, with the album being rife with the band's signature goth and industrial-tinged metal, with some clear toe-dipping into nu-metal here and there too."[3]

Distorted Sound scored the album 7 out of 10 and said: "In all, MOTIONLESS IN WHITE have sculpted an album that will surely continue to contribute to their domination, but it does feel as though it achieves this at the expense of innovation and more forward thinking ideology. They are a band that have achieved a lot despite their hardship, and their well earned confidence shines through Disguise at every opportunity."[7] Adam Rice of Wall of Sound rated the album 3.5 out of 5 saying, "Motionless In White have done it again, although not all songs are great there is a healthy mix of different styles and genres which would tailor to anyone's music tastes. With not one song sounding similar to another, its a bag of all sorts!"[2]

Loudwire named it one of the 50 best metal albums of 2019.[9]

Track listing[edit]

All tracks are written by Motionless in White

No.TitleLength
1."Disguise"3:58
2."Headache"3:29
3."</c0de>"3:49
4."Thoughts & Prayers"4:01
5."Legacy"3:33
6."Undead Ahead 2: The Tale of the Midnight Ride"4:34
7."Holding on to Smoke"4:14
8."Another Life"3:25
9."Broadcasting from Beyond the Grave: Death Inc."3:54
10."Brand New Numb"3:42
11."Catharsis"3:52
Total length:42:31
2021 special edition bonus track
No.TitleLength
12."Somebody Told Me" (The Killers cover)3:19
Total length:45:50

Personnel[edit]

Credits retrieved from AllMusic.[10]

Motionless in White

  • Chris "Motionless" Cerulli – lead vocals, additional guitar, production, composition
  • Ryan Sitkowski – lead guitar, bass, backing vocals on "Thoughts & Prayers"
  • Ricky "Horror" Olson – rhythm guitar, bass, backing vocals, co-lead vocals on "Undead Ahead 2: The Tale of the Midnight Ride"
  • Vinny Mauro – drums (credited, but does not perform)
  • Justin Morrow – bass, backing vocals (credited, but does not perform)

Additional musicians

  • Tom Hane – drums, engineering, composition[11]

Additional personnel

  • Drew Fulk – production, mixing, composition
  • Jeff Dunne – engineering
  • Justin DeBlieck – vocal engineering, editing
  • Johnny Andrews and Gaiapatra – composition
  • Dave Rath – A&R
  • Kim Schon – management
  • Zach Dunn – cover art
  • Sean Smith – design, layout
  • Lindsay Adler – photography

Charts[edit]

Chart (2019) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[12] 32
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[13] 69
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[14] 65
UK Albums (OCC)[15] 98
US Billboard 200[16] 27
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[17] 4
US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[18] 2
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[19] 4

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Kenworthy, Ian (6 June 2019). "Review: Motionless In White – Disguise". Already Heard. Retrieved June 6, 2019.
  2. ^ a b c "Motionless In White – Disguise (Album Review)". Wall of Sound. 4 June 2019. Retrieved June 4, 2019.
  3. ^ a b c Zelaya, Carlos. "ALBUM REVIEW: Motionless In White – Disguise". Dead Press!. Archived from the original on June 12, 2019. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  4. ^ "Motionless In White won't release new album on Fearless Records". Altpress.com. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
  5. ^ a b "MOTIONLESS IN WHITE To Release 'Disguise' Album In June". Blabbermouth.net. 17 April 2019. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
  6. ^ "MOTIONLESS IN WHITE: Visualizer Video For New Song 'Undead Ahead 2: The Tale Of The Midnight Rider'". Blabbermouth.net. 10 May 2019. Retrieved May 10, 2019.
  7. ^ a b Fella, Daniel (6 June 2019). "ALBUM REVIEW: Disguise – Motionless In White". Distorted Sound. Retrieved June 6, 2019.
  8. ^ "Motionless in White - Disguise". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
  9. ^ "The 50 Best Metal Albums of 2019". Loudwire. Townsquare Media. December 3, 2019. Retrieved March 7, 2021.
  10. ^ "Disguise album credits". AllMusic. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
  11. ^ "Today is the day!". Instagram. Tom Hane. Archived from the original on 2021-12-25. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  12. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Motionless in White – Disguise". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
  13. ^ "Austriancharts.at – Motionless in White – Disguise" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  14. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Motionless in White – Disguise". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 20, 2019.
  15. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  16. ^ "Motionless in White Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
  17. ^ "Motionless in White Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
  18. ^ "Motionless in White Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 18, 2019.
  19. ^ "Motionless in White Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 22, 2017.