Review by Saxy S for Amaranthe - Massive Addictive (2014)

Trance metal eh? Granted, I know next to nothing about this genre. From what I can gather, it's a sub-genre of metalcore that derives itself on it's electronic elements, in a similar way to way The Devil Wears Prada would have done many years ago. Unlike TDWP, Trance metal is more concerned about the catchy hooks, consistent tempos and, typically, uptempo energy. So that leads me to Amaranthe, a Swedish metal band whose 2014 album, Massive Addiction is one of the more popular albums in this sub-genre.

And I think it needs to be said that Amaranthe are pretty good at stabilizing a decent hook. Sure, the album may sound repetitive as hell, but on their own, these guys have some really catchy tunes. I especially enjoyed the sounds of "Digital World", "Unreal" and the closer "Exhale". While some of the other songs are still pretty decent, they seem very redundant and fade from memory very quickly, especially the first half of this album.

So why don't I like this more? As I already mentioned, the songwriting is serviceable, but it does get pretty ridiculous when you are halfway through the album and have heard almost no artistic growth until "Over and Done". I also am not the biggest fan of the synth choices used here. Just like TDWP, they are usually tinny and piercing, or they are pushed so far back in the mix that this just starts to feel like a straight metalcore album.

My other problem is style. Like I said, I'm basically a n0ob with trance metal so take this all with a grain of salt, but isn't the concept of "trance" a state of hypnotism and heightened consciousness? I had originally thought that trance metal was a genre that incorporated elements of wall of sound tactics similar to shoegaze. But when I listen to Massive Adidctive, I don't get any of that. I'm not getting lost in this music like I would with say... a pagan black metal album.

Maybe I'm not getting the full picture here, but I can't deny that this album does have some strong moments. To me, this feels like the kind of music you turn when at a party full of metalheads, and you want to turn on something that everyone will like, but no one is intently listening to the music. It feels like background noise. Not bad background noise, but lacking in any emotional impact.