NORMA JEAN - MERIDIONAL TURQUOISE MARBLE COLORED ANNIVERSARY EDITION DOUBLE VINYL LP. A 2020 RECORD STORE DAY BLACK FRIDAY EXCLUSIVE TITLE. LIMITED TO ONLY 2500 COPIES!!

Metalcore band Norma Jean is from Douglasville, Georgia, a northern Atlanta suburb that's only a stone's throw from where I currently reside. In its original incarnation, the band was known as Luti-Kriss, and were something of a Christian metal band. As the band began to move into a more mainstream metal approach, Atlanta rapper Ludacris suddenly exploded onto the scene, and Luti-Kriss soon transitioned to a new band name: Norma Jean. The band has undergone a serious number of personnel changes over the years, with none of the original members still around from when the band first surfaced around 2000, and no fewer than fourteen group members having come and gone over a twenty-year period. The current line-up features long-time lead singer Cory Brandan and lead guitarist Grayson Stewart, who's been with the band since 2019. Current touring members of the band include Clay Crenshaw on guitar, Johnny Muench on bass, and Matt Marquez on drums; this has been the band's arrangement for a couple of years now. 

Meridional is the band's fifth studio release, and was their first for the Razor & Tie imprint. The album's title comes from terms used in astronomy and cartography, in which "meridional" refers to moving in a southerly direction on the globe. This is particularly appropriate for a band that is essentially a "southern" metal band. Three other brief musical interludes on the album include "Septentrional" (northern), "Oriental" (eastern), and "Occidental" (western), all further enhancing the astronomical leanings of the album. The driving "Deathbed Atheist" was the big single from the record, and was even used in a clip from a music video that advertised the album on television—you don't see too many advertisements for metalcore bands on television!

The record came at a time of transition for the band, and the aftermath of its 2010 recording marked the departure of several longtime members, making vocalist Cory Brandan the only member present at the album's recording still with the band. Meridional is widely considered to be Norma Jean's breakout record stylistically, and was recorded in Atlanta at Glow In The Dark Studios; Jeremy Griffith was at the controls as the album's producer. The record reached No. 45 on the Billboard charts at the time of its release, and was showered with significant praise by metal critics everywhere. All Music's review of Meridional described Norma Jean as "a band that has really hit its stride creatively, taking the techniques it has developed and putting them all together into one enjoyable package." The record shows the band's embrace of Metalcore and Mathcore fundamentals expanding to include the use of keyboards, acoustic guitars, and percussion effects, giving the band an almost prog-like sound at times. This is the album that elevated them to a higher position among the ranks of metalcore bands.

Craft Records' RSD release celebrates the album's tenth anniversary, and marks the album's first LP repressing since its original issue in 2010. Featuring two 140 gram LPs in translucent, marbled turquoise vinyl, the LPs were pressed by MPO in France, and they're beautifully done. The heavy jacket features the original's striking artwork on a tip-on type, gatefold outer sleeve, with heavy inner sleeves featuring more of the cool album artwork, along with lyrics and extensive credit information. As with the Jazz Dispensary LP above, marks for collect-ability based on looks alone is a 10/10, but the sound quality of the LPs is also very close to perfection, making Meridional a very desirable record package for collectors and fans alike. This is a good starting point for those looking to delve more deeply into Norma Jean's music; the remastered tracks haven't made their way onto the streaming services yet, but you can at least check out the original release files as well as the bulk of their back catalog. 

TRACKLIST:
A1Leaderless And Self EnlistedA2The Anthem Of The Angry BridesA3Deathbed AtheistA4BastardizerB1A Media Friendly Turn For The WorseB2SeptentrionalB3Blood BurnerB4High Noise Low OutputC1Falling From The Sky: Day SevenC2Everlasting TapewormC3OccidentalD1The People That Surround You On A Regular BasisD2Innocent Bystanders UnitedD3Oriental
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