Review by Shadowdoom9 (Andi) for Sybreed - Slave Design (2004)

Cyber metal was originally developed by bands like The Kovenant and Deathstars as a more melodic electronic sibling of industrial metal. With that kind of underrated sound, why that subgenre isn't as popular as it should've been is far beyond me. And of course, we can't forget about the more epic new wave of cyber metal in bands like Mechina and Neurotech. But in between those eras is one band that would push the subgenre's development further, Sybreed.

If I were to think of what their debut Slave Design sounds like, I say it's like a continuation of Fear Factory's sound in Demanufacture with a bit of the melody of The Kovenant and the mechanism of Godflesh. While the album doesn't necessarily copy those bands, it can't really sweep the globe as much as those bands despite how great it is...

Already blasting forward is the first and best song of the album, "Bioactive". Right there, you get to hear the members drive through sonic cyber/industrial metal without relying too much on electronics. Here we have the powerful drumming of Alex Anxionaz, showing a bit of Fear Factory influence, the gloomy vocals of Benjamin Nominet ranging from clean to harsh, the heavy guitar grooves of Drop, and the burning bass of Burn. "ReEvolution" is another cool cyber metal highlight with audibility in Burn's heavy bass. "Decoy" has less balance though, but the delivery appeals well to me when the music and vocals shine in the clean sections. The otherwise crushing riffing in "Synthetic Breed" seems to implode, which makes the song fall f***ing flat. And that's tough when it's a song named after both this band and another band named Synthetic Breed.

The industrial machinery powers up better in "Next Day Will Never Come", another strong tune. We actually get some djent-ish groove that isn't as needlessly repetitive as some of the later modern djent bands out there. Now that's some catchy cyber/industrial metal to get you the f*** moving! "Machine Gun Messiah" continues the band's heavier side. "Take the Red Pill" has some more cyber metal action. The title even references the movie The Matrix. The heavy instrumentation and screamed vocals shall keep you awake from beginning to end.

"Rusted" has some decent atmosphere and experimentation. "Static Currents" starts off with some neat electronics, but when the metallic groove comes in, things sound a bit worn out. "Critical Mass" is an interesting closing track. It starts off sounding almost like the second Embodyment album The Narrow Scope of Things, but it slowly rises into the usual cyber metal that Illidiance would later have. Epic! There are also a couple bonus radio edits, for "ReEvolution" and "Decoy", which we'll just ignore.

Slave Design shows how well the band can bring the sounds of earlier bands like Fear Factory and The Kovenant into a cool soundtrack to technological resistance, though it's not entirely fresh. Still this is really great for the cyber/industrial part of my metal heart, and it might just grow on you too....

Favorites: "Bioactive", "ReEvolution", "Next Day Will Never Come", "Take the Red Pill", "Critical Mass"