Shadowdoom9 (Andi)'s Reviews

"Why do people have to live outside? In the brutal heat or when it's below freezing, there are people that are made to live outside, why?" Interesting question, and don't forget when the world is infected by a certain massive pandemic.

Desperate anguish has a home. A home that consists of a noise-ridden industrial sludge arsenal, ready for the listener to make a stinging dark descent. There is a rough edge in everything, rounded up by the only light grace that is some post-punk elements. Anyone stepping into this journey should be aware and not underestimate what's coming for them. Welcome...to God's Country!

The thundering "Slaughterhouse" takes you into the deep terrifying abyss in uniquely bleak production. Continuing the sludgy riff-rage, the nihilistic "Why" has those lyrics I've mentioned above that describe the need to live in a hole and hide from outside society. It eerily fits well with the times when the pandemic was at full swing. There's direct pain from the screamed fury when the lyrics detail that kind of denial. Stepping through in the leads and drums is "Pamela", leaning into melodic post-punk territory, with the vocals by Raygun Busch switching to baritone mumbling.

Continuing that is the more frantic "Wicked Puppet Dance", though adding some more growls and noise similar to Daughters, while the guitars might remind some of Idles. Keyboard passages give light to the pummeling darkness of "Anywhere", giving the song some change leading up to a final section of sharp guitar noise.

Raygun Busch in "Tropical Beaches, Inc." seems to have changed his vocal style a bit, sounding a bit soft while staying aggressive. Nonetheless, the sludge storm rumbles... "The Mask" departs from the album's post-punk-ish side, rolling into tearing screams. "I Don't Care If I Burn" is a short breather of spoken word. Then "grimace-smoking-weed.jpeg" is a sinister 9-minute industrial sludge metal attack, expanding on the percussion and screams until all fades to oblivion.

The album cover marks a good hint on the industrial sludge template, a bit similar to a few of Godflesh's cover arts, but the band's black metal-like intro might confuse the more extreme fans that are invited here. Here we have a nice dense dark forest to travel through as you retreat from the outer world of terror....

Favorites: "Why", "Wicked Puppet Dance", "Tropical Beaches, Inc.", "grimace-smoking-weed.jpeg"

The sophomore album from 108, Songs of Separation, marks metal's entry into the hardcore subgenre Krishnacore, where beliefs in the Hindu deity Krishna is the central lyrical theme to bands of the subgenre. Other such bands include Ray Cappo's bands Shelter and Youth of Today. 108 follows the stylistic path of the latter band, discarding the more punky sounds, in favor of the beats, breakdowns, and vocals, all mixing the aggressive early hardcore of Minor Threat and the deathly sludge riffing of Eyehategod. Of course, this is Krishnacore! Expect lyrics of the Krishna conscious lifestyle instead of the typical drugs and violence.

In saying all that, the metallic quality doesn't shine well in the album, causing massive turbulence in my enjoyment, though "Son of Nanda" has the best lyrics here of chasing dreams built on emptiness, "Worship the Son of Nanda sweet and become fearless". Though a tiring opposite is "Solitary" when it comes to those lyrics, "Each moment without you I die, oh Krishna". The closing "Pale" unleashes one more hardcore attack against the "9 to 5 scam".

I think what helps guide the members' transcending beliefs through the lyrics is the screaming vocals of Rob Fish and the dreamy background singing of Kate-O-Eight. It's a decent lesson for the metal and hardcore realms, but not worth my time of listening. Live and learn....

Favorites (only ones I like): "Son of Nanda", "Pale"

From the heart of Savannah, Vatican has mashed up metalcore's different eras, such as the 90s hardcore era and the more tech-sounding new millennium, even adding a bit of post-hardcore, deathcore, electronicore. They have pretty much anything for every metalcore/hardcore fan! I wouldn't say this impresses me a whole lot, with a few factors including the album's short runtime of 35 minutes, but it's worth adding more to the modern soundscape of metalcore.

Ultra was released 3 years after their debut Sole Impulse (far shorter than Trenches' gap between albums), and they continue their move to their extending goal. There isn't too much of a significant problem with what they do.

The opening "Slipstream Annihilation" kicks off the highly aggressive strength. They stay strong in the subsequent "I Am Above". Then "Reverence" has more of the heavy rage expected by fans of metalcore. It's also the first song of the album to be a single and include clean vocals. Yeah, the singing appears sporadically throughout the album, hinting at Deftones-esque ether among the rage. The band makes a sudden turn in "Where Heavens Collide", a more radio-friendly track, with more of the clean vocals plus electronics. There's still some solid strength, but the album is better as a headbanging slasher, as it is in most of its remainder. "[ULTRAGOLD]" proves it right away with ultraviolent metalcore to blast you in the face without relenting.

The furious pace pauses for "Don't Speak", a brief electronic intermission. Exploding like a bomb is the brutal decimating "Decemeta". Then "Uncreated Waste" unleashes the tech-ish riff-wrath in just two minutes once again. The powerful fury continues in "Damage".

The unexpected "By Your Love" is a better clean-sung post-hardcore standout with an anthemic chorus. "Miracle of the Moon" is absolutely spiteful. "Mirror Dream" has more chaotic mathcore a la The Dillinger Escape Plan, and there no reason to complain about it if you're a true metalcore fan like me. "N.U.M.B. (Neutralize Under Maternal Bond)" hits you hard with emotion and violence. The finale "Did You Ever Notice I Was Gone?" adds piano and female singing to the electronic mix which sounds mediocre to me.

Softer speed bumps aside, Ultra is quite strong and heavy with half of the amount of songs impressing me. It would be nice if they can go heavier on the edges and not pull out too many sudden soft twists in such a short runtime for the album, but you can find very plenty to like here. The modern metalcore scene still thrives....

Favorites: "Slipstream Annihilation", "Reverence", "[ULTRAGOLD]", "Uncreated Waste", "By Your Love", "Mirror Dream", "N.U.M.B. (Neutralize Under Maternal Bond)"

Around the time when Zao was uniting Christian metal with hardcore, Strongarm was doing the same with a more melodic approach. It's a shame this band was short-lived, but like other bands that have only lived for a short time, they left behind a strong legacy...

Anyone who likes the intense heaviness of Earth Crisis should not have a problem with this album. It stays intense throughout with deep intelligence. The rhythm section makes amazing twists in sync with the rest of the band. Drummer Chris Carbonell switched to vocals for this album, and his extreme voice is the key to the album's quality, though sometimes he adds in a bit of spoken word like other bands in the hardcore league. The lyrics are interesting in understandable thought.

"These Times That Try Men's Souls" takes on those lyrics of pure desire for truth, "The price paid for living in light, is that of gold in the crucible, ever melting, straining, striving to be made pure". Another track that can cut through lyrics is "Supplication". The inspiring "Council of Perfection" is my favorite, having some more amazing lyrics.

"More Bitter Than Death" continues those excellent lyrics as well. The trio suite of the title track, "Measure of Consequence", and "Sorrow is a Sage" all fit together with a lyrical story of the eponymous "Advent of a Miracle", "the breath of God", and longing for truth. Incredible!

"Increase" once again places Strongarm on the path to the Christian metalcore throne that's taken by Zao. "The Fall of Babylon" once again shows the band's Earth Crisis-like sound that would plant the seed for later melodic metalcore bands like Shadows Fall. The cool hidden track "Together" is a cover of a song by Endure, the previous band of guitarists Nick Dominguez and Joshua Colbert.

Those two guitarists, bassist Chad Neptune, and drummer Steve Kleisath moved on to a different emo-rock band Further Seems Forever. Chris Carbonell couldn't join because of his inability to do cleans as greatly as his screams. Despite breaking up, Strongarm shall be known as an impressive metalcore band with effective words!

Favorites: "Council of Perfection", "The Advent of a Miracle", "Measure of Consequence", "Sorrow is a Sage", "The Fall of Babylon"

The virus can be considered both a blessing and a curse. Bands everywhere couldn't tour, but a few bands use the opportunity to make another album such as Trivium and, of course, Rammstein. The most famous Neue Deutsche Härte band has finally settled the pace back down to 3 years between albums after that long 10-year gap between the previous two. Zeit shows the band's resilience from this global trauma as they continue their larger-than-life journey...

Zeit (Time) has some sonic strength that fits well for the band's identity. The guitars and vocals that are significant points of the band's sound are still running. I wouldn't say the formula is f***ed, but a few tracks have a bit of roughness.

The ride opens with "Armee der Tristen" ("Army of the Dreary Ones"), in which the band plays their typical sound, adding in some synths from Depeche Mode and a KMFDM-like mid-tempo pace. Though the tempo would really drop in the next two songs... Mourning this virus-ridden cruelty, the title ballad has soft piano and vocals, sounding restrained while still beautiful and remarkable. The sorrowful "Schwarz" ("Black") gets you hooked with more of the piano.

"Giftig" ("Toxic") is a mechanical stomper that's almost like a remake of "Du Hast". That I like! The single "Zick Zack" ("Snip Snap") mixing their usual riffing with a dance-beat, picking up what they've been doing since their previous album. The fantastic highlight "OK" ("Ohne Kondom" ["Without a Condom"]) full-on rages in the vein of their early 2000s work. The soaring choir and Pantera-like groove is what levels up my enjoyment. Another power ballad "Meine Tränen" ("My Tears") sounds more strained while keeping the dynamics in place.

"Angst" ("Fear") stomps away the anxiety that the band has written about in the lyrics. After that, we have "Dicke Titten" ("Big T*ts") adds in the Oomph!-like sound in the riffs and refrain while adding circus-like brass and lyrics praising large-breasted women without causing a perverted fetish. While that doesn't shock me, I can't say the same for "Lügen" ("Lies"). It starts with a slow harp intro that makes me think it would lead to another ballad. Well, it does, but once Till Lindemann starts singing instead of speaking, the vocals sound autotuned like a bass/baritone-sounding T-Pain. A nice try at experimenting, but it makes that song perhaps the worst stinker here. The marching finale "Adieu" ("Farewell") has reflective piano and a sign-off message, "You have to go the final way alone".

Despite the madness of the early 2020s, Rammstein unleashes their force in different layers in Zeit. They've fearlessly battled on with their strength, and the journey was only scarring in a couple places, shown quite well throughout this well-fought offering....

Favorites: "Armee der Tristen", "Zeit", "Giftig", "OK (Ohne Kondom)", "Angst", "Adieu"

Today is another day of listening to and reviewing a Today is the Day album, in an attempt to roll the dice on finding what I might enjoy from this band. Thanks Ben for adding their self-titled 3rd album that now qualifies for the site! So let's dig in to see what it has to offer...

Despite the original CD being out of print for so many years, Today is the Day's 3rd album is a significant one. It's their first album to be self-produced in founding guitarist Steve Austin's recording studio Austin Enterprise. The bassist is out, but the band instead added a keyboardist to add a more electronic vibe. With that said, the album is known as the band's entryway into the metal sound that would develop in later albums. You know how much I like these transition "missing link" kind of albums!

Right from the start, the cacophonic "Kai Piranha" begins the heaviness as thick as a humid swamp. The vocals have that strange unsettling mood alternation between screams and cleans. "Marked" sounds less vague and more threatening. The excruciatingly amazing puncher "Bugs Death March" is more twisted, bringing up horrifying imagery of bugs crawling all over your skin like in one of those video games when you end up in a swarm-infested part of a cavern, helped out by the keyboard/vocal domination alongside some samples and noises. A spooky favorite! It then leads to a pure acoustic interlude, "A Man of Science".

"Realization" is another experimental highlight, and I'm stunned that I've evolved from the melodic metalcore of All That Remains to this band's sound. "Black Iron Prison" is a soft eerie interlude that reminds me of some of the interludes The Dillinger Escape Plan would make. "Mountain People" has a great amount of progressive experimentation similar instrumentally to Voivod and early Protest the Hero. "Ripped Off" continues the music expansion with more of the keyboards and screaming/singing vocal alternation.

"The Tragedy" is a just drum interlude. Beware of "She is the Fear of Death" if you can't handle the creepy insanity of weird falsetto gasps and strange explicit lyrics. But I can understand that kind of nature, and consider that track another gem. "I Love My Woman" is a funny 30-second serenade interlude. "Dot Matrix" is one last sludgecore track.

Indeed, Today is the Day's self-titled 3rd album begins the band's transition to metal, but I can't describe exactly its disturbing power. Austin and co. produced a noise-ridden classic, yet sometimes you can get lost in the dense twists. It's almost like they've made intentional and unintentional jams for this malevolent atmosphere. Still this offering helped fans of the band and sound appreciate them more, me being one of them 27 years after release. But the entryway would be opened further by the Morning Star....

Favorites: "Bugs Death March", "Realization", "Black Iron Prison", "Mountain People", "Ripped Off", "She is the Fear of Death"

I wouldn't have had the leeway to enjoy this 5 to 10 years ago, but g****mn, this is one of the best brutal technical death metal/core fusions I've heard! Despised Icon's debut album Consumed by Your Poison was first released via Galy Records in 2002 in their homeland Canada. It wasn't until 4 years later, after releasing their second album The Healing Process, when they re-released it to the rest of the world, thanks to Century Media.

One of the vocalists is different from the rest of the discography, screaming gal Marie-Hélène Landry. Her vocals sound a bit weird but you'll get used to it. The structure and brutality gives the band a similar vibe to their country's small tech-death scene led by Gorguts and Cryptopsy.

The addictive "Compelled to Copulate" rapidly fires brutal death metal/core mayhem without ever lighting up. "Poissonnariat" can please the more brutal fans who can tolerate the gore within the tempos, riffs, and bass. Those first two tracks were later re-recorded as bonus tracks for the re-release. "Grade A-One" has more groove while continuing the ultraviolent chaos. "Le Chêne et le Roseau" is almost like a more hardcore Cephalic Carnage.

The one-minute deathgrind track "Dead King" starts with a weird industrial intro, then continues blasting off in some of the most inventive vocal variation in all of deathcore. "Absolu" is an absolute highlight of early deathcore hellfire. "Fashionable" helps the band show that they're display their deathcore in wild madness rather than fashion.

"Interfere in Your Days" is another track that's more chaotic than even mathcore bands like Psyopus. "Clef de Voûte" has pretty much the most teamwork in any of 2000s deathcore. The technical riff-wrath continues leveling up from groove to sounding similar to Between the Buried and Me at that time. "Despise the Icons" is one more short grinder that seems a bit like an afterthought, while not affecting the rest.

Marie-Hélène Landry would end up leaving the band after this album, but a different vocalist would help lead the band into fame and do those aforementioned re-recordings for the re-release. This pummeling gem should be listened to by the more brutal metalheads before judging. Let the brutal deathly storm descend!

Favorites: "Compelled to Copulate", "Dead King", "Absolu", "Interfere in Your Days", "Clef de Voûte"

"Good afternoon, sir. How may I help you?" "Yeah, I'd like that Sikth EP please." "Sure, here you go." (after paying) "Thank you." "You're welcome. Have a nice day." This young gentleman makes his smooth gentle walk from the music store back to his car, places the CD into the stereo, and once the music starts playing, he switches from a polite gentleman to a rowdy headbanger and starts driving away like a madman.

I can't believe I haven't fully discovered one of their releases until now. This band has really cranked up their talent higher than 11! While this might not be for everyone, the heavier metal/hardcore fans of bands like Converge and The Dillinger Escape Plan can and should really get onboard.

The fantastic title opener has a crazy lot of guitar shredding and screaming babbling in a way that I love. Apparently it tells some kind of interesting fictional story. The band's first ever song "Suffice" was re-recorded for this release, and it's as fantastic as the previous track without any need for improvement. "Tupelo" is a cover of a song by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, doing the original justice while keeping Sikth's identity.

One of the vocalists, Mikee Goodman is awesome at his work. He's as energetic as the rest of the group, all determined to shake up their live performances. The 3 songs were all re-recorded for their debut album The Trees Are Dead & Dried Out Wait for Something Wild. Listen to this band and witness how hard-hitting they can be!

Favorites: "How May I Help You?", "Suffice"

1000 Homo DJs... With a name like that, you might think of the ultimate LGBT DJ festival. This is actually a short-lived side-project of Ministry and a few other well-known late 80s industrial rock/metal musicians. The group released two double-sided singles, and this is one of them, Supernaut, though the EP edition includes that other single.

Let's start with the title track, an amazing old-school industrial metal cover of a Black Sabbath tune. The leader of the group and Ministry, Al Jourgensen has done quite an effort in making a doom-ish industrial metal tune that can work well for a disco club. While the lyrics and pace are the same, it sounds more massive with the amped guitars, pounding drums, and distorted vocals. Apparently, the vocals were originally by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails, but he was with a different record label, so to prevent legal issues, Jourgensen re-recorded the song with his own vocals sounding similar to Reznor. Rumor has it that it's actually Reznor's vocals highly distorted to conceal his identity, but that rumor was denied. The original single's B-side "Hey A****le" is never really something that would really make industrial metal history. All the song has is a repeated loop of industrial rhythm and chanting the song title, in the background of a lengthy rant from a foul-mouthed cop.

The two tracks from their earlier single released in the EP version make up for that sh*tter, the fun early industrial rock/metal of "Apathy" and the similar but repetitive "Better Ways". Get rid of that 8-minute a****le cop rant and you have a fine decent EP. I think I'd rather head for Lard if I want one of Al Jourgensen's earlier side-projects....

Favorites: "Supernaut", "Apathy"

PassCode is a trance metal/core band, having a similar vein to Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, though with a Babymetal-inspired Japanese girl lineup. So far, I've listened to one song from this group, as part of an individual trance metal track challenge, and it became perhaps my personal favorite track from an album deemed trance metal that isn't Amaranthe. I'll tell you what that song is soon. Now it would be interesting to find out how the rest of this album contributes to deciding the fate of trance metal...

Clarity has 13 tracks, and each track has something that anyone can. There are the fast heavy songs for metalheads to enjoy, and a slow soft ballad suitable for the melodic listeners. Pretty much most of these tracks and quite fun and worth great listening.

The album opens with "Projection", a great way to introduce what PassCode is known for. The fast guitars and drums drive though rock-out pleasure. "Dive Into the Light" is another fast track, suitable for clubs with its beat and awesome bass. Third track "Ray" is a song trance fans cannot miss! It's a typical part of the band's sound, and it works like a charm. Unlike the 4th track literally titled "4". That one's much different compared to the rest, and it almost comes out as filler.

"Taking You Out" is that song from the trance metal track challenge, opening with mighty growls alongside awesome riffing, then in the verses, the girls come in with their own different styles. That heavy fast song is perhaps the greatest of this album! Next up, "The Day With Nothing" sounds closer to rock from 20 years ago. A catchy uplifting gem! "Horoscope" is also different, this time being a lovely ballad that the more melodic listeners really want. The clean vocals that the entire group sings sound so natural, and the ending guitar solo is so sweet. "It's You" returns to the usual sound, sort of. The instrumentation is more of a synthesizer-infused take on A Day to Remember's pop punk, which works quite well. The piano that sometimes appears in a nice touch. The energetic vocals ranging from melodic to extreme add catchiness to the lyrics, shining especially in the chorus. Actually the harsh vocals are much less in this track compared to the other heavy songs, and when they do appear here, they sound restrained. But never mind that, it's still a fun highlight.

What kinds of throws me off slightly is "In the Rain". First we have the video-game-sounding synth intro, then a burst of brutal harsh vocals in contrast to the happy instrumentation. That part can be considered heavy hardcore possessed by synthesizers. The band's well-known balance in sound comes in the verses with vocal melodies and catchy lyrics. Another time when the growls shine is during the breakdown. I wish the chorus could be as strong as the rest of the song though. Still it's d*mn good enjoyment for the greater fans of PassCode! "Trickster" adds more of the madness in the speedy synths and drums, though it's slightly draggy. Another breakdown occurs before the final chorus. "Tonight" isn't a really special track, but a good one to look out for. "Will" slows things down slightly while still sounding fast, but it can win a bit of their audience when adding atmosphere to live shows. The bonus track "Ichika Bachika" is once again different, but a nice ending highlight.

All in all, Clarity is a great album of J-pop-infused trancecore. Can't say I would ever recommend this entirely to the heavier metalheads. But if you're up for what Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas sounds like with a Babymetal-like lineup, you're in for a treat....

Favorites: "Projection", "Ray", "Taking You Out", "The Day With Nothing", "Horoscope", "It's You", "Ichika Bachika" (bonus track)

Music is forever. If a musician, whether solo or in a band, is gone, his/her/their work would live on. They should never be forgotten, even the most unpleasant to the outsiders. Why am I telling you all this? You'll find out as you read on...

Formed in San Francisco, Admiral Angry can feed listeners some anger that might be terrifying for the inexperienced. Originally a grindcore band, they then switched to their own sound that combines the sludge of Neurosis, the hardcore of Black Flag, and the doom-ish heavy metal of Black Sabbath. Vocalist Chris Lindblad delivers some of the most tortured-sounding vocals in extreme metal/hardcore. The sludgy low tempo shows some talent in writing, while being a bit restrained.

The opening "Sex with a Stranger" begins with the downtuned sludge you're in for, slower than a snail. After the first minute and a half, what's more interesting is the sudden change to a bouncing beat with some of the heaviest riffing to be heard. Then near the end, the tempo picks up higher, and you can jam out with it. Turning back into slow tempo, "Circling the Drain" starts with a few-second ambient intro before the sludgy doom riffing bursts in again. A little over 3 minutes in, the sound starts to drone a bit, but then a minute later, a head-pounding riff practically mixes a Southern vibe with slight Northern black metal. That's a vicious display of anger!

Track 3, "Kill Yourself" opens with a headbanging Meshuggah-like djenty riff that then transitions into Will Haven's sludgy groove. This context is leveled up with percussive riffs and high tremolos. Once again it ends interestingly with high-tempo noise. Next up, "Plastic Bath" is perhaps the most metalcore (and there's barely any here) drumming and riffing. It's all quite heavy, with the drums sounding industrial. "Blowdown" is certainly a key highlight. "Android" has skillful drumming including a pummeling drum outro.

"Specimen On" has faster jazzy drumming, but it's a poor under-two-minute track. This is made up for "Bug Vomit". And even more in "The Illusion of Strength", the ending highlight, with one or two notes played over and over for a minute as part of a riff. This is tight tough heaviness you wish for more of from the band members.

Sadly, founding guitarist Daniel Krauss passed away from cystic fibrosis at age 22 after recording this album and one more EP. I felt some pain in my heart when I found out because I lost an outside-world friend of mine last month (as of this review), same age, similar cause of death. This is why I want you all to remember the work of this band and their fallen guitarist. Buster is a good album with some of the heaviest dread. RIP those two young fellows gone too soon; Daniel Krauss and my outside-world friend....

Favorites: "Sex with a Stranger", "Kill Yourself", "Plastic Bath", "Blowdown", "The Illusion of Strength"

Black metal has been known as satanic, but sometimes progressive and/or epic. I prefer to get the epic side of metal from the progressive metal of Opeth, instead of the black metal of Emperor, Dimmu Borgir, and Satyricon. Do you ever wonder if bands combine the epicness and complexity? This band can! They've done it with great magic that many other bands of similar styles lost over the years. However, it's not like a Christmas present that I've really desired (and it is close to Christmas as of this review) in some parts, but there's no way this will ever make me as disappointed as I was about Opeth's prog-rock era.

Of Erthe and Axen (Act I) is quite an exciting thrill-ride, and it was definitely worth the 5-year wait fans of the band had since their debut, though they would have to wait even f***ing longer for a new one after Act II. This is kind of a throwback to around the time of the album's release, when I was an older teen listening to other band of the more epic progressive metal shortly between switching to its extreme side and more modern genres. It really satisfies what I've expected! The band members have done a brilliant job turning this album into a near-perfect masterpiece. While I hear a good amount of symphonic black metal, the album is not entirely like that, balanced out with tremendous progressive metal. Even the story is planned out to be as structural as the music.

The introduction is what sets up the story and lets you know what the story will represent, and "Open the Gates, O Forest Keeper" would help get you in your seat as an orchestral overture. "To Lost and Ancient Gardens" introduces you to the story lyrically, though honestly those first two tracks should've combined into a full introduction. Further introducing the different aspects, "To Higher Climes Where Few Might Stand" brings in the enigmatic progressiveness along with the epic black metal fury.

Continuing the progressive complexity in the knot is "To Souls Distant and Dreaming", sounding as epic in the music and storytelling as Opeth's Still Life. "In Deep and Wooded Forests of My Youth" is unique in the progressive/symphonic black metal realm, sneaking in an acoustic ballad with clean male/female vocals to pause the complexity and fury the rest of the album has to offer. It's much better than Blind Guardian's "Bard Song (In the Forest)", but as someone who's aiming for more of the heaviness, that doesn't really lighten things up for me.

You can tell we're already entering the climax when you first hear the chanting in "The Sound of Hunger Rises", like some serious sh*t is gonna happen. The magnificent story of heroism and tragedy continues to be told within this metal soundtrack. "Have you ever felt this way before? Can you feel the power surging through your soul?" Sung in impressive honesty to keep you up to date in the story's occurring calamity. This is also achieved in "The Sound of a Glinting Blade", one more soft ballad. "The Sound Which Has No Name" is the cinematic finale where the band has mastered it all. This is symphonic black metal within the orchestration, tremolos, and blast-beats, along with vocals ranging from unclean to clean, and the progressiveness is added once again to the brutality. An epic ending!

In the end, we have a beautiful first part of the Of Erthe and Axen saga. Will I ever be up to checking out the exciting conclusion? Not today, but perhaps one day when I'm fully up to exploring more of non-satanic black metal and the more cinematic progressive metal. And this epic offering has given me a bit of motivation!

Favorites: "To Higher Climes Where Few Might Stand", "To Souls Distant and Dreaming", "The Sound of Hunger Rises", "The Sound Which Has No Name"

In the same year as All Shall Perish's debut, Deadwater Drowning had also released an EP that was known as a blueprint for the modern deathcore we know today. It was the only release they've ever recorded before splitting up after two, and the band members would continue in other bands that have their deathcore sound thanks to this EP, such as Fit For An Autopsy, Through the Eyes of the Dead, The Acacia Strain, The Red Chord, and Whitechapel.

This EP that holds 5 of only 6 songs in the band's existence is one I like! They straight-up blend elements of technical death metal, hardcore punk, and grindcore in a death cauldron in a similar vein to The Red Chord.

The opening "Sleepwalking with a Knife" rolls on with that sound. You can hear those genres crossed over in high quality, and it should really be given a chance. As the next track "Getting Sentimental on That A**" gets close to an end, f***ing melodic dissonance can be heard, which sounds great, but sadly after 10 seconds, you can never hear it again, and it should've been played as a recurring thing throughout the song. Up next, "Bliss From a Dead Embrace" kicks a** with f***ing might. It can convince you to dive into the heaviness. "My Fist, Your Face" has some consistent fluid, but the next track is the EP's true standout... "The Best Sex I Ever Had Started with a 900 Number and Credit Card Verification" is perhaps the best song of the EP, scary with some bits of Drowningman.

Holy sh*t, this EP can really shake the room and have only the weak and inexperienced running away. Though this band quit shortly after this one EP, they've made a promising start for the deathcore that we know and often hate, but for me, it's something to love at an appropriate amount of brutality!

Favorites: "Sleepwalking with a Knife", "Bliss From a Dead Embrace", "The Best Sex I Ever Had Started with a 900 Number and Credit Card Verification"

All Shall Perish first released their debut Hate Malice Revenge in 2003 via Amputated Vein, a small record label in Japan. Then two years later, the album was re-released via the more popular metal label Nuclear Blast. This isn't the metalcore ground I was staying firmly planted in, this is g****mn vicious deathcore!

See, I was once focused on the modern metal of Trivium and Lamb of God, but I've recently gained the leeway to explore something more brutal. A genre that combines the aspects of those two bands with the death metal of Dying Fetus and the Black Dahlia Murder. All Shall Perish mixes the breakdowns from hardcore with pulverizing guitar rhythm, rapid drumming, and a monstrous vocal range of growls and screams. This album is filled with relentless deathcore devastation, sounding memorable and catchy.

The intense yet short "Deconstruction" begins the album with an incredible blend of punishing rhythms, searing guitars, and hyper-fast blast-beats. And the great intensity doesn't stop from there, continuing and increasing throughout. Next one "Laid To Rest" bludgeons listeners with deep breakdowns and severely all-over-the-place drumming, way more brutal than Lamb of God's song "Laid to Rest". Slowing things down is "Our Own Grave", a menacing track with crushing riffs. There's almost a sludgy vibe, but the occasional speed gives the track more variation.

Next up, "The Spreading Disease" can be considered a bridge between that Spread the Disease album I've listened to and the earlier Lorna Shore EPs. "Sever the Memory" is another perfect bridge between the prototypical and the modern, from Eighteen Visions' 90s era to Veil of Maya's 2000s era. "For Far Too Long" fires their occasionally slower brutal sound like cannons at war.

"Never Ending War" is a thunderous highlight, a 6 and a half minute epic of powerful chords and leads, not to mention the earthquake-including breakdowns. The last track "Hearing The Brainwashed" has the potential to hook you up with lacerating leads.

All Shall Perish really should've had more innovative fame than Dying Fetus, but not many of the heavier metalheads are as eager to walk the blazing deathcore trail as I am. Hate Malice Revenge has that interesting technical heaviness of crushing Hell that has satisfied me much more than it would have 5 years ago. The more brutal fans should really try this album before they judge. Even the most serious listener will smile at this ground-shaker!

Favorites: "Deconstruction", "The Spreading Disease", "Sever the Memory", "Never Ending War"

The Red Chord has some interesting backstories behind their name and album titles. The band name comes from the opera Wozzeck; if I'm getting this right, a man was hypnotized to slash his lover's throat and strangle her with a string in the slashed throat, then he snaps out of hypnosis and asks, "My love, what is that red cord across your neck?" The name of the debut Fused Together in Revolving Doors references a nightclub fire in 1940s Boston; people were trying to escape via revolving doors, but it was so crowded and thereby impossible to escape that they were burned to death by the fire and assimilated to the doors. When you find a bizarre or tragic backstory in the name of a band and/or an album, you know that the music is also bizarre and, for the heavier ear, pleasing.

Fused Together in Revolving Doors is another early deathcore discovery for me that is love at first listen! I'm already years apart from when the band was active. I might suggest those songs for my brother to play in car rides, if he can handle this much chaos.

First track "Nihilist" starts with an insane blast of screaming deathgrind without ever lighting up. Continuing on is "That Certain Special Ugly" with the best lyrics in the album about "the worst joke they could have told". Next up is "Catalepsy", having some of the fastest brutality, starting awesome in the riffing without ever stopping. Psyopus did a comedic cover of that song as a hidden track for the album Our Puzzling Encounters Considered.

"Like a Train Through a Pigeon" blasts through in relentless devastation. The nature of the track keeps mauling you. "He Was Stretching, and Then He Climbed Up There" can be considered the album's intermission, a two-minute instrumental, sounding mellow in the acoustics. It segues into another perfect highlight "Breed the Cancer".

"L Formation" is another two-minute track, this one being a great song filled with different time changes, and apparently the lyrics are about chess. These guys have great talent and intelligence! "Dreaming In Dog Years" is perhaps their best song here. After an odd 5-second intro, it explodes into absolute mayhem, great for a live setting. Another one of the best, "Sixteen Bit Fingerprint", is a 7-minute epic with progressive structure, a bit like what Between the Buried and Me had at that time.

I just can't say no to this band's debut! I've listened to the more hardcore genres from The Revolution for 5 years, and nothing is as perfectly chaotic as this that's worth listening to. I look forward to checking out more of this unclean production in their later albums. It's this kind of raw production I prefer to hear instead of the lo-fi black metal of Darkthrone. It's thin in a way that everything can still be heard. However, you don't wanna make the production too clear, otherwise the experience would be far different from what it already is. Just listen to this brutal chaos, with perfection in everything!

Favorites: "That Certain Special Ugly", "Catalepsy", "Breed the Cancer", "Dreaming In Dog Years", "Sixteen Bit Fingerprint"

Now ain't this the most shocking revelation in any metal community website! A metalhead who had never dared to explore the standard death metal of Morbid Angel has finally done so...with their most hated album, the St. Anger of death metal, Illud Divinum Insanus! I thought I would check it out and give it a review to finally hear what the deal was after noticing its industrial elements pointed out and a few tracks appearing in the earlier monthly Sphere playlists (before the ones I created). This was released in 2011 when Skrillex and dubstep were sweeping the globe, and bands of most genres were pressured to follow that trend. Bassist/vocalist David Vincent, who had rejoined the band for this album, had past experiences with other genres. Guitarist Pete Sandoval couldn't participate because of surgery for a herniated spinal disc, eventually fully leaving a few years later due to his Christianity. Of course, I have to also mention the two guitarists Trey Azagthoth (founding member) and Destructhor (temporary).

Illud Divinum Insanus may be one of the worst albums in metal history, but for me it's not as bad as what others think, probably because of my industrial metal passion. Yep, the style is basically their death metal sound toned down with emphasis on industrial metal and synth-rock. You can also hear some interesting vocals from Vincent including some Spanish! I say this album is about half-fun half-awful, not very cohesive yet still interesting, probably would work better as a few EPs. Despite the downsides, Morbid Angel have gone their most diverse in this style of styles. The vocals and guitars have different tactics in each track, so i can do my usual track-by-track analysis to add a bit of cohesion to a review for a not-so-cohesive album. So let's try it...

"Omni Potens" starts things of as an ominous synth-orchestral intro to remind some of Summoning's album intros and the RuneScape soundtrack. The unexpected sound begins with the first full track "Too Extreme!" The vocals sound cleaner than what death metal fans desire, and in some verses, Vincent sings in Spanish for some reason. Vincent dominates this track more than Trey Azagthoth whom longtime fans consider the actual heart and soul of the band. The intricate soloing those fans want is absent. What really puts this sh*t to ruin is the drumming. Tim Yeung can drum pretty well, but he seemed to use a drum machine for this one. The fact that song is pretty much my entryway to the music of Morbid Angel would disgruntle longtime fans who discovered the band via their 90s albums and want more of that era's sound. One song that's closer to the earlier death metal is "Existo Vulgoré", but that sh*t is too weak for its existence. "Blades for Baal" is acceptable with its stronger attempt at that earlier sound.

One of the worst songs in the album is "I Am Morbid", which is morbidly atrocious. The lyrics are pretty much a f***ing lousy attempt at tackling metal culture the way Manowar can. There's that boring verse-chorus structure with little variation. All of that make that track the worst here and one of the absolute worst stinkers in metal. Carcass's Heartwork is a far better deal for mid-tempo melodeath. "10 More Dead" adds more of the deathly aspects as the band should have. "Destructos vs. the Earth / Attack" is a decent song in the industrial metal category. The structure is quite repetitive, but adds the same time it sounds fun. Plus there's a bit of death metal at the end that would foreshadow a later return to form.

The solid death metal comes back again in "Nevermore". That track and "Beauty Meets Beast" bring back the earlier riff groove, though with a slight edge of the mainstream they were only hinting in those older albums. While I won't elaborate on those songs as much as songs from my other reviews, I'll say that the variation isn't essentially prominent, yet works better without too much of the lyrical charisma. Only fans of the 4 albums before this one would tolerate those riffs, though I like a bit of them too. "Radikult" is the second-sh*ttiest song of the album. F***, this sounds too much like Marilyn Manson! The only good thing is how well the song moves. Vincent thinks he could go Primus on his bass and vocals, but the former ends up practically inaudible. What an absolute drag that is... The closing "Profundis - Mea Culpa" is the best track here. The industrial rhythm and metal complexity are combined very well, Vincent's vocals are very captivating, and there's none of that sh*tty rock in sight.

With all that said, Morbid Angel had really stripped things down for this album. David Vincent had already worked with the band in their earlier groundbreaking albums, and his replacement Steve Tucker continued the band's brutal development. So it's puzzling how low the songs can go in Vincent's comeback release. The longtime fans would definitely like a bit of the different eras of the band they've thrown back to while p*ssing on the industrial metal/rock sounds. They would for sure stay away from the dubstep of Skrillex and the dungeon synth of Summoning's album intros and prefer to stay with Morbid Angel's first 3 albums. Sure, this band really roughed up their fanbase's expectations, but I appreciate what they could do. I just don't wanna have to hear those two rock-sounding sh*t-songs again, and there's much worse trash out there....

Favorites (only ones I like or slightly like): "Blades for Baal", "10 More Dead", "Nevermore", "Beauty Meets Beast", "Profundis - Mea Culpa"

Saint Asonia is a band formed by Adam Gontier, the former frontman of one of my brother's favorite alt-rock bands Three Days Grace. They can almost be considered the Fight the Fury of 3DG, sounding more metallic than the more well-known band, at least in this EP...

Other members to be part of the band include Staind guitarist Mike Mushok and Art of Dying members bassist Cale Gontier (Adam's cousin) and drummer Cody Watkins. My brother enjoys the band's two studio albums which both have what he likes, alt-rock with metal tendencies, but that kind of sound doesn't really grab my attention, especially not in the EP Introvert. It's cool that they released two separate EPs, with the second one being the heavier Extrovert, with the intention to release a full compilation later.

Extrovert opens with "Devastate", filled with powerful modern alt-metal, with a chorus of melodic wonder. It's only surpassed by "Break the Mold", a highlight of melancholic groove. "Over It" is a catchy ballad-ish track with perfect hooks to be remembered so easily. I still can't believe "Wolf" was chosen as the band's lead single. After enjoying the massive greatness of the EP's first half, this track is the weakest of the EP and tears down what made it great. We get a bit of the melancholic groove back in "Better Now". Then "Chasing the Light" restores the positive spark of the release, though not as much as those first 3 tracks.

All in all, I can recommend this to fans of Three Days Grace, Staind, and Shinedown, who wanna give this band and EP a chance. However, it's not for the majority of the metal community. Still it hits harder and heavier than most of their other material....

Favorites: "Devastate", "Break the Mold", "Over It"

Previously on the journey of Demon Hunter, the band re-recorded classic ballads in their own acoustic album Songs of Death and Resurrection, but it just made me wish for a return to metal form someday for this band. As a young adult listening to the heavier metal, I don't wanna lose interest in this band, and I thought I might if they continued to go softer. I mildly enjoy the War and Peace duo, in which the former showed more of their metal capabilities, whereas the latter experimented closer to hard rock territory.

For their new 12th album Exile (also the first with their own self-founded record label), I was hoping for a more equal-sounding album like the ones the band made before War and Peace. Sadly, it sounds like the Peace side is slowly taking over the sound...

However, the furious "Defense Mechanism" opens with the band's usual heaviness, featuring growling vocals by Max Cavalera (ex-Sepultura, Soulfly). "Master" has a bit of a Motionless in White vibe in the industrial background within their alt-metal. There are two songs in the album that are the longest by the band since the closing epic of their 2002 debut, the first of which is the 7-minute "Silence the World", a beautiful epic reminding me a bit of Trivium's Silence in the Snow album, and featuring singing by Tom S. Englund of Evergrey. The incredible highlight "Heaven Don't Cry" is worth being a radio single, mixing heaviness with melody. This can reach the mainstream without stripping down the sound as much as Songs of Death and Resurrection and instead elevating the writing quality.

"Another Place" stands out as another highlight, sounding ethereal in the first verse before a rising chorus that's one of the best here. The excellent lyrics tell about escaping from darkness into light, "If we're not allowed to be, breathe outside the lines, we will find our place, just beyond their eyes, somewhere of our own, somewhere through the black, set the old ablaze, never turning back." Track #6 "Freedom Is Dead" marks a full return to the metalcore energy and growled vocals from Ryan Clark, though it seems more like an appetizer compared to the rest of this main course. "Praise the Void" is a re-recording of the sole new song from Songs of Death and Resurrection, adding full instrumentation instead of just piano/strings. The widely ranging lyrics are much clearer here, "But here in the dark, I feel nothing, I see no one, no solace at all, we once heard the lasting call, but now we praise the void, for this love, wasted love, praise the void, we found nothing is enough." Then enters "Revolutions", ranging in vocal variety, battling between the screaming empire and the soft-singing rebellion.

The riffing note in "Chemicals" drags on for too long, sounding uninspired. "Godless" is interesting because of the guitar soloing by Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner. It's his first studio recording since his near-fatal health-scare; he was performing with Priest and apparently the encore song "Painkiller" was more than he could physically take, ending up suffering an aorta rupture and internal bleeding. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he had a 10-hour open-heart surgery. It was shocking for him because he never had any heart issues before then. Luckily he's still alive, and he recorded his aforementioned guest appearance a couple months later. One more highlight, "Devotion" is the last island of metal heaviness in a sea of dark brooding melody. The second of the band's two longest tracks, the closing 8-minute "Along the Way" is just underwhelming through its long length, repeating choruses and verses when they should've included a bridge of vocal alternation. Talk about ending the album on a soft whimper...

There are barely any bands formed in the new millennium as active and prolific as Demon Hunter, with most of their albums being excellent works of art. They have matured over the years, despite Exile not reaching the band's earlier excellence, and I appreciate Clark's efforts in making albums like this. There's a little more atmosphere in the music, and the album has its own defiant concept set in futuristic fantasy. Clearly, Demon Hunter has discarded most of their well-known metalcore and brought in a cleaner variant of the early 2000s alt-metal, but hey, it's your call if you wanna hear how less heavy the band has become....

Favorites: "Defense Mechanism", "Silence the World", "Heaven Don't Cry", "Another Place", "Praise the Void", "Revolutions", "Godless", "Devotion"

The new Demon Hunter album Exile has just come out recently, and I look forward to talking about whether or not it holds up for me well. But before that, it's time to review take a dive into their acoustic re-recordings album Songs of Death and Resurrection...

It's impressive that this successful band released 12 studio albums in a span of 20 years. Their blazing metalcore career can please metalheads and non-metalheads, and so can the occasional rock ballad that each album has. It's quite disappointing when the band chose an acoustic direction for their 11th album, though not surprising. Songs of Death and Resurrection strips down their popular rockers and ballads, all from their first 7 albums, plus one song from Peace, and another re-recorded for Exile.

"My Throat Is An Open Grave" is a soft opening highlight. A cello and a violin can be heard creating significant waves. The lyrics have most amazing sorrow regardless of the lame emo-ish song title. "Dead Flowers" is a soft ballad that once again offers the lighter sweet side of the band. "The Heart of a Graveyard" has less of a ballad-like pace, being much stronger and more energetic. With a synthesized intro and the vocals being entirely clean, it can almost be considered a poppy song. That song deserves some radio play! "Praise the Void" is the new track that would be re-recorded for Exile, and one of the band's strongest recent ballads. The strings and vocals sound so beautiful. The lyrics can range from sarcastic ("Now we praise the void, for this love, wasted love") to feeling isolation ("Here in the dark, I feel nothing, I see no one").

"Blood In The Tears" returns to the re-recordings section with a soft moving ballad like 3 of the earlier tracks. The band's talent is in broad range there! In "Loneliness", it makes sense that the band chose another song without screaming vocals nor a breakdown, since it never happens! With that said, it's nice when the song focuses on Ryan Clark's clean vocals. "I Am a Stone" sounds smoother than the other track from True Defiance, "Dead Flowers", this time being just a string-accompanied movement with some of the best written Demon Hunter lyrics. A little boring but still uplifting! Demon Hunter's love for ballads continues its display in "I Will Fail You". However, the later ballads from the band aren't usually as good as in their earlier albums. Not only that, the bridge is written better than the chorus that are usually what the band focuses more on. And by better, I mean so much better that it might be one of the more notable parts of the album, with that pattern repeating in later albums. While all those tracks in the second third of the album sound nice, it's just doesn't peak my interest as much as the originals, hence the rating staying at 2.5 stars.

"Deteriorate" is another ballad, beginning with slow acoustic guitar. Then the song picks up with Ryan's amazing clean singing. The lyrics are some of the best in the Christian realm of music. One of the best songs here! "Carry Me Down" is a stunning ballad that's absolutely gorgeous. It can make a good funeral song for Ryan Clark, with lyrics speaking of faith and heaven. The chorus is so comforting without much tension. "The Tide Began To Rise" has beautiful piano and violins, followed by Ryan's atmospheric voice that start the song, which is the second-to-last ballad and track here. Aside from the weird ambient background break, this is a good song that could use a little more work to fix the flow. Still it would be a good happy ending, but there's one more track left... Finally we reach the peaceful ballad "My Heartstrings Come Undone" which fits perfectly well as the finale. However, the lyrical subject is more cryptic.

See, that's a similar issue to what was up with their previous album Peace; the band got much softer in sound to the point where it's mostly ballads, and Songs of Death and Resurrection ended pushing the idea further. I'm a metalhead. I'm not one of those softer fans or radio stations in which the only songs from rock/metal bands they choose are ballads. While I do enjoy half the amount of ballads in their original forms, it's their loud metal sound they're supposed to be known for. There is beauty in those tracks, but just not something worth long-time interest. If the die-hard fans want to listen an entire one-hour acoustic album, they can go ahead. I prefer the heavier metalcore....

Favorites (mostly in their original recorded forms): "My Throat Is An Open Grave", "The Heart of a Graveyard", "Loneliness", "Deteriorate", "Carry Me Down", "My Heartstrings Come Undone"

One fine metal/hardcore experiment! Will Haven strip down their influences from various genres and build them back up with their own sound. It's been 25 years since this album was released, but when I finally reached it, it's like a fresh new experience. Everything in here has pounding rhythm, vicious guitars, and primal vocals. One moment, we have quiet guitar atmosphere with bass/drums atmosphere, and the next there's loud dynamic force.

The drums are so unique in their straight and simple style, and I wouldn't be surprised if they recorded them in a few days alongside guitars and bass. Yet they efficient unleash their energy in intense punches!

A well-done opener is "Stick Up Kid", starting with spooky guitar, a catchy drum beat, growling bass, and finally the heaviness kicks in with those powerful vocals. The album's grand highlight is "I've Seen My Fate", with the band's signature violence. "Ego's Game" has some of the best groove metalcore I've heard since their first two Lamb of God albums. The theme of disconnection can be found in the lyrics for "Mason".

Alcoholism is covered in the lyrics for "Climbing Out This Bottle". Then we have "Extinguish", another great highlight. "Baseball Theory" has a bit of the metalcore that bands like 36 Crazyfists and Dead to Fall would later have, albeit in a sludgy pace.

"June" has a bit of the prog-ish tendencies later found in Misery Signals. The slower "Foreign Film" is so brutal and beautiful at the same time. If there's one reason for you to listen to the finale "¡Escucha!", a 9-minute track of odd ambience, it is to have a better chronic auditory hallucination than a song by Burn the Priest (pre-Lamb of God) with that title. Strange yet mesmerizing!

With blasting vocals, plus dynamics ranging from relentless to menacingly soft, this is an example of an album with extreme influences from metal and hardcore. Perfectly diabolical, this is El Diablo!

Favorites: "I've Seen My Fate", "Ego's Game", "Extinguish", "Baseball Theory", "Foreign Film"

You know how much chaos Fear Factory has added to their industrial metal sound and lyrical themes, but then there's the interpersonal chaos for the band members. The band has been in a feud with drummer Raymond Herrera and bassist Christian Olde Wolbers since their hiatus after Transgression. But then a decade later, those former members and the current members ended up in a lawsuit over the rights to the band's name, which halted production of this album Aggression Continuum. In the end, the unique frontman Burton C. Bell unfortunately had to leave the band. He still managed to record vocals for Aggression Continuum before the lawsuit started.

Still in the heavy/melodic blend they've had since Obsolete, the band keeps up the cyber-ish modern industrial metal sound they've helped developed, and the lyrical themes visualize a Terminator-like post-apocalyptic world with complex yet accessible writing. The heavy thrashy groove metal that was popular in the early 90s had also somewhat affected this band, with them possessing some groove elements, most notable in their recent material, especially Genexus, all while having cold keyboards synths to go with the metal heaviness, like human flesh covering the metallic skeleton. Music lives on, often being revived and dying, and the guitar/rhythm assault helps keep their sound alive. And at the frontstage, Bell pulls off his amazing vocal range from Meshuggah-like growls to melodic cleans, in his final offering with the band...

The maniacal "Recode" begins with a cinematic intro consisting of a Terminator-like speech over dreamy keyboards. Then the massive rapid-fire thrash commences with heavy djenty assault from the guitars and bass, as the keyboards go on in symphonic grandeur to add hope to the desolation. The otherwise mundane verse-chorus structure shows how well-composed the song is when the verses go aggressive and the chorus goes anthemic. A simple structure for this widely-ranged opener of this album! Pounding in rage is the awesome "Disruptor", continuing the heavy groove and bass, while the catchy melody makes this the perfect single it already is. The title track has more frantic thrash in the cyber complexity, though there's some subtle repetition. "Purity" is more melodic, yet the djenty heaviness roams around. And there's definitely more of that blend to continue in this album...

Melodic harmony occurs in "Fuel Injected Suicide Machine" during the chorus, while jackhammering through different riffs and rhythms. Rhys Fulber once again provides keyboards similar to his own project Front Line Assembly. The bridge transition melody is so beautiful! Bell's clean vocals in "Collapse" is very brief compared to other songs, only appearing in the bridge before more of the downtuned metal blasting. With a full-on riff frenzy, "Manufactured Hope" leaves a monumental mark.

Next track "Cognitive Dissonance" hooks you up with prog-ish keyboards, as Dino Cazares blasts along with his riffing and Mike Heller drills on the snare, leading to a catchy chorus that almost leans into alt-metal. After all that mechanical deathly heaviness, "Monolith" is more mid-paced with a rock-out chorus and a rare guitar solo. Pretty good, but not what the ex-members would've wanted. Then we come to the end of the line with the finale "End of Line", probably the best extreme industrial metal song I've heard in a long time, especially those clean vocals. After the last of the thrashy riffing, it all ends with keyboards and narration, just like in the beginning. We'll miss you, Burton....

You can for sure consider Aggression Continuum Burton C. Bell's swansong without a doubt, since he had really kept the band for all those years, leading up to his departure. Nonetheless, he once again helped the band make their attempt to restore the glory of the metallic monument that is Demanufacture. The towering aggression is in line with the smooth melody. The brilliant instrumentation are in excellent interplay with those stellar vocals we won't have more of from Bell in this band ever again. And it's great seeing that guitar master Dino Cazares determined to keep the band rolling. A new future for the band is certain, now that they just found Bell's replacement in Milo Silvestro, whom we haven't anything from yet. But for now, this album marks the end of an era, like that of a certain Marvel hero in Avengers Endgame. (Spoiler alert!)

Favorites: "Recode", "Disruptor", "Fuel Injected Suicide Machine", "Manufactured Hope", "End of Line"

Fear Factory has been known for their heavy modern style of industrial metal, but I say Genexus is one of their more groove-oriented works, closer in sound to Mnemic. The mechanical riffing and drumming have crushing mid-tempo groove, and the vocals are more gruff-sounding though not as brutal as in their first album. I think the only other album that's near groove metal territory is Demanufacture, and that one just dominates with industrial metal...

Demanufacture is known as the album that catapulted the band into fame with its revolutionary modern industrial metal style. Obsolete and Digimortal keep their mark afloat with some variation. However, the band's era without guitarist Dino Cazares didn't turn out well. Sure, Archetype had some praise, but Transgression did not go so well. When Dino finally rejoined Burton C. Bell's band, the mighty Mechanize was hailed as a natural return to form, and The Industrialist continued that evolution with some bumps. And there's more to explore in their 2015 album Genexus, perhaps their best album in the 2010s era!

Spiraling in is the opening track "Autonomous Combat System", showing how muscular Dino Cazares through all those years as a professional metal guitarist. Supporting his guitar and bass is the pummeling percussion performed by drummer Mike Heller who joined the band for The Industrialist tour and has stayed with the band since. Joining the band for the Genexus tour is bassist Tony Campos who's more of a live member than a studio member, probably because of his commitment with Static-X. Scoring a home run in the writing is "Anodized". Same with "Dielectric" with starts off an ominous string intro before the downtuned electric guitars go all out wild, displaying a lot of the band's Mnemic-esque industrial/groove metal direction.

"Soul-Hacker" is another groove-powered anthem worth it for the mosh pit. "Protomech" takes on the band's speedy side from Mechanize. With more of that precise speed in the title track, it fits well with Cazares' crushing riffing. Slightly forgettable is "Church of Execution", but it still has a bit of potential in the energy.

"Regenerate" continues to have the heavy and melodic sides duel with each other. Bell's vocals get you hooked as always, while the keyboards by Rhys Fulber sound clean and melodic, essential for making that song one of the most memorable here. "Battle for Utopia" will help you get ready for a futuristic robot battle. Perhaps the biggest stunner is the 9-minute ending epic "Expiration Date", one of the most haunting and beautiful tracks by the band! Could this be "Resurrection 2.0"?!?

Fear Factory have shown quite the improvement over the years. A couple lesser tracks aside, Genexus shows the band at an impressive height. I'm amazed that they still have their passion since a few years before I was born, and they know what's crucial for the fans. Genexus continues the band's excellent journey to power up their machine!

Favorites: "Autonomous Combat System", "Soul-Hacker", "Genexus", "Regenerate", "Expiration Date"

Fear Factory made an amazing comeback with their album Mechanize. Added to the lineup for that album were members of the defunct Strapping Young Lad, legendary drummer Gene Hoglan and powerful bassist Byron Stroud, the latter have previously been credited for Archetype and Transgression despite not performing in those albums. However, those two guys left the band just before this album...

The Industrialist was released in June 2012, having been written, recorded, and engineered by just vocalist Burton C. Bell and guitarist Dino Cazares. Clearly their friendship and teamwork really is back on track, and they can really write the music and concept effortlessly!

The opening title track is similar in structure to that of Mechanize. First off, we have an industrial sample intro that then leads Dino's riffing and Burton's screaming. However, the intro lasts a minute and a half, and in the beginning, Burton provides spoken dialogue against religion. When the tight riffing comes on, so does the drum programming, which sounds similar to Gene Hoglan's drumming in Mechanize but more digital. The riffing from that album and even the two albums before Mechanize all in full intense force with dissonant machinery. However, the unremarkable "Recharger" has a more complicated formula. Too repetitive in the verse riffs and vocal melodies. But there's more of the catchy majesty in "New Messiah" with an epic chorus.

"God Eater" has a cool keyboard/piano intro, an aspect introduced in Mechanize. The verse is also promising in the deep riffing and shouted vocals. But then it ends up getting so repetitive, especially in the extensive outro that works better as background music for DOOM. "Depraved Mind Murder" is where Burton's vocal melodies stretch through in a pleasant way and together with Dino's chords, they make the song more memorable. The bass and drums are also interesting. More of the growling fury appears in "Virus of Faith". And again in "Difference Engine", though not working so well, and kind of ruining that song by their poor attempt to recreate the glory of Demanufacture.

Next track "Disassemble" is as h*lla heavy as technical death metal. It's like you're in a trash conveyor about to be cut apart and stomped on before incinerated, and the interlude it segues to "Religion is Flawed Because Man is Flawed" has undeniable atmosphere for when you feel the fire burning you away. Wrapping things up is "Human Augmentation" which is a better ambient closer than that of Archetype. The bonus remix of "Difference Engine" isn't great at all. But their cover of Pitchshifter's "Landfill" is!

All in all, The Industrialist is a pretty great album. It's a shame that bassist Christian Olde Wolbers and drummer Raymond Herrera are no long with the band. Maybe they can make amends and reunite with their ex-bandmates for a special Demanufacture anniversary tour. For now, this album has kept the band's journey excellent all the same....

Favorites: "The Industrialist", "New Messiah", "Depraved Mind Murder", "Disassemble", "Human Augmentation", "Landfill" (Pitchshifter cover)

So the Fear Factory era without Dino Cazares ended as what most of their fans would considered a failed experiment. That era was the result of a feud between vocalist Burton C. Bell and guitarist Dino Cazares. With the two having restored their friendship in 2009, it was time to reform the band together again!

It was a 5-year gap of silence since the album before this one. Fans of the band's earlier material were waiting for a comeback into the sound of Demanufacture. And while there's a bit of praise for the heavier side of Archetype, you know how atrocious they thought Transgression was. And here's the long-awaited real comeback, Mechanize! With this mighty technical blend of melody and intensity, what the band's fanbase has been expecting from them has finally returned, and so has Dino Cazares.

The title opener will take your breath away as a crushing punisher. While not exactly the right tone-setter, it's a h*ll of a heavy comeback. Then "Industrial Discipline" blasts through with their earlier deathly industrial metal. It ends with a cool outro that just stops abruptly. It's a small issue, but quite great nonetheless. The clean chorus of "Fear Campaign" displays Burton's vocal power quite well. It's one of the best songs in the album and by the band! Dino actually performs a brief solo, which is cool blazing sh*t there. Another killer standout is "Powershifter". Hitting things harder is "Christploitation", furious enough to obliterate some of the songs from their previous two albums. That's quite a lot of heaviness so far in the album, and it's amazing!

There's also the awesome "Oxidizer". The breakdown after the chorus blasts out hard. Imagine how intense this 45-minute album would be if it's entirely as heavy as that. "Controlled Demolition" also stands out with its heaviness, with lyrics detailing the government being blamed for 9/11. Of course, there's something different to blame, so theorists should cut the bullsh*t. In the bridge is a sample of the 911 call from one of the victims in the World Trade Center as the tower started collapsing ("OH GOD! HELP-"). So the album is all great until "Designing the Enemy". Not bad, but a bit too tame and slow, with simpler riffing and drum kicks despite keeping the Meshuggah vibe. After 3 minutes, there are some growling vocals before going back into clean singing. Nice track, but a bit of a flow disruptor worth skipping. It would've made sense if that track and its outro "Metallic Division" close off the album. But then we have "Final Exit", which itself is a perfect satisfying closing track of hope. Quite a tough call...

Let's set that oddity aside for the bonus tracks in the deluxe digipack edition, all of which directly flashback to the deathly early 90s, starting with a re-recording of "Crash Test" from their debut Soul of a New Machine. Filled with diverse intensity, it shows the band's heavy deathly roots in contrast to their current groove-ish industrial metal sound. And to be honest, there's more fury I can hear from this re-recording than the original. After that is the band's 3-track 1991 demo from before their shelved album Concrete, consisting of 3 tracks; "Big God", "Self-Immolation", and "Soul Wound". My favorite of the 3 is "Self Immolation", as killer as the Soul of a New Machine version.

Mechanize marks the return of the band's true form since the initial Dino Cazares era. The thrill ride starts without too much letting up and ends quite powerfully, despite me not being sure about which track should really end the album. You're gonna be give this offering a lot of listens if you're a Fear Factory fan like I am. Get ready to Mechanize!

Favorites: "Fear Campaign", "Powershifter", "Oxidizer", "Controlled Demolition", "Final Exit", "Crash Test" (re-recording), "Self-Immolation" (demo)

The Fear Factory album before this one, Archetype, showed the band's music without Dino Cazares for the first time, with mature rawness. Over half the amount of songs are strong highlights, though I can't say the same for the rest of that album. That f***ed-up Nirvana cover at the end of that album was a foreshadowing sign of how low the band would go without Dino, and that ended up coming true for the longtime Fear Factory fans...

This album Transgression is indeed kind of a transgression! Burton C. Bell was in production control with Toby Wright and he selfishly didn't want any songs written by other members, including faster heavier songs. With guitarist Christian Olde Wolbers frustrated by this, no wonder he left the band later along with drummer Raymond Herrera.

Firing things up is the opener "540,000° Fahrenheit" with a natural hardcore-ish industrial metal sound. That song alone has made the album more noticeable! The title track is closer in sound to Soul of a New Machine. I'm not pleased with the vocals and lyrical immaturity. Still OK though! Next, "Spinal Compression" jumps into the sound of their next album Demanufacture with a killer deathly touch. "Contagion" has the catchy melodic sound of Obsolete, sounding uplifting yet hopeless. My second favorite song here!

"Empty Vision" hails as another great highlight, showing the band's more experimental side from Digimortal. Not as glorious as those previous highlights, but still the band's true sound. I was expecting "Echoes of My Scream" to sound close to the sound of Archetype, but bad news... IT AIN'T!!! This one's just a full-on sin! I mean, they've done the slow melodic ballad aspect before, but this is too soft for their standards. Not like the band at all! "Supernova" sounds more like the alt-rock/metal bands my brother listens to, but it still passes as a suitable highlight. However, "New Promise" is far beyond what even remotely resembles Fear Factory, the closest they've gone to melodic hard rock.

"I Will Follow" is the most sinful cover by the band since their previous album's Nirvana cover. This time they actually sound too much like U2 with not much metalizing. A complete opposite of their usual style! "Millennium" is another cover song that sucks a**. At least they actually made that Killing Joke song a bit like their own, but it sounds too wrong. "Moment of Impact" makes me relieved to finally hear what sounds like true Fear Factory. I'm just not gonna bother with listening to the bonus track "Empire"...

Transgression is like Fear Factory's own Amorphis Far From the Sun, with one half being superb highlights and the other half being more average tracks and total atrocities. It's better to listen to the highlights rather than the whole thing, for a taste of perfection so the weaker songs won't leave you with a sour-as-mold taste....

Favorites: "540,000° Fahrenheit", "Spinal Compression", "Contagion", "Empty Vision", "Supernova", "Moment of Impact"

Archetype is quite an interesting Fear Factory album, though not their best. After a one-year breakup, the band continued without founding guitarist Dino Cazares. Bassist Christian Olde Wolbers took over on guitars and co-wrote the music here together with drummer Raymond Herrera. This caused the band's evolution of sound to go a different direction that would continue in Transgression, their most divisive album. Archetype is still quite solid and looks back at all the band had done previously...

The changes might not be what the more strict Fear Factory listeners would like, yet has pleased a good amount of the fanbase. Whether or not their riffs sound reused, the fans' bitterness would be saved for Transgression. Archetype is not highly disappointed, showing the band's strength they can have without Dino.

The album kicks off with "Slave Labor", one of the best songs by the band. Crushing riffs, blazing drums, and humongous bass play alongside convincing vocals from Burton C. Bell. "Cyberwaste" continues the heaviness with f***ing unreal drumming. An absolutely intense highlight! However, the issues start with "Act of God", which is filler but not too much of a stinker. "Drones" returns to the band's greater formula of heavy power, futuristic with melody and groove.

The slightly f***ed up title track sounds less inspired, and that's a bad sign if the album's title track comes out as bad. "Corporate Cloning" is a better highlight showing that the band can have their own unique sound and not sound like a clone to other bands. "Bite the Hand that Bleeds" is a power ballad I have no problem with at all, despite other Fear Factory fans disliking it. "Undercurrent" continues the softness but adds more of the heaviness. It fits better as a bonus track rather than part of the album, but hey, that's my opinion. Is there anything to level up this album later on?...

"Default Judgement" isn't spectacular, but it's solid with its deep bass tone. The next track "Bonescraper" has the band's earlier aggression and is one of the heaviest songs here. "Human Shields" is another slow track, though it might fit well for their previous two albums. "Ascension" is just a boring 7-minute ambient track, but it would be a much better ending for this album than the next track... The useless cover of Nirvana's "School" is just a sh*tty attempt in metalizing a grunge song. An unfitting waste of time!

Anyone who expecting Demanufacture 2.0 had their hopes shattered. Nonetheless, Archetype is a pretty great modern metal album. Its diverse strength in over half the amount of songs shall keep the open-minded pleased. It's a great comeback that could do without some songs especially that d*mn Nirvana cover....

Favorites: "Slave Labor", "Cyberwaste", "Drones", "Corporate Cloning", "Bite the Hand That Bleeds", "Bonescraper"

These industrial metal geniuses started with a heavier death metal sound in Soul of a New Machine. Then came a conceptual trilogy of albums transitioning from there to a more melodic sound. Well, they ended going on a one-year hiatus after this album Digimortal, and then came back with Archetype, the first of the two albums in which their founding guitarist Dino Cazares was absent, partially resulting in some poor reception...

For this album Digimortal, there are some people who think this is as much of a piece of sh*t as those two albums with Dino Cazares, but I have to say that it isn't, mostly. Digimortal is worth great listening despite the differences in sound. The concept of man and machine continues, this time leading to the point where they can co-exist together in society. Burton C. Bell continue making songs based on different themes written in the story. Digimortal continues the band's usual aggressive/melodic blend, though a lot of the aggression is put aside for darker melody in Dino Cazares' guitarwork. Burton C. Bell gives the album some mood with his vocal harmony.

"What Will Become?" is a mid-paced opener. "Damaged" is one of the best examples of the industrial metal destruction. The title track shows the harmonized mood coming from Burton's vocals. "No One" has more of that mood. You just gotta f***ing love "Linchpin", in which the band add a bit of Dry Kill Logic-style hardcore nu metal into their industrial metal in better execution. The lyrics are totally worth singing along to. "Invisible Wounds (Dark Bodies)" is another amazing song, having pleased many longtime Fear Factory fans for so many years. The best part is the heavier bridge at over the two-minute mark. Other than that, it sounds closer to some of my brother's favorite alt-rock/metal bands that I've discovered when I was middle-school-age, and it might be good for one of our car rides. This should really be shared to the world!

"Acres of Skin" is probably the band's heaviest song at that time since the ones in Soul of a New Machine. However, it's followed by perhaps the worst song by the band, "Back the F*** Up", an unfitting rap metal track featuring B-Real of Cypress Hill. This useless sh*t really breaks this otherwise perfect album's flow. Fortunately, "Byte Block" makes up for that as a longer 5-minute track of hostile aggression. And that continues in "Hurt Conveyor". The 7-minute closing epic "(Memory Imprints) Never End" shows Burton's vocals with the most haunting emotion since the earlier albums, though not much of the more extreme growls.

Consider yourself lucky if you have the digipak edition (Digipak-Mortal, lol!), with bonus tracks beginning with the intense "Dead Man Walking". There's a bit of strain in "Strain Vs. Resistance", but it still rules. "Repentance" should been in the album's standard edition instead of that f***ing rap track. It's a little strange but still great! The last bonus track "Full Metal Contact" is an instrumental written for the racing game Demolition Racer. It's a bit useless, though far better than that rap track.

All in all, Digimortal is a strong album with great instrumentation, and I can never complain about most of the songs here. I know the more pure metalheads won't like the modern experimentation. But for those who do, just skip that d*mn hip-hop track and you're in for an amazing album that shall be immortal!

Favorites: "Damaged", "Linchpin", "Invisible Wounds (Dark Bodies)", "Acres of Skin", "Byte Block", "(Memory Imprints) Never End", "Dead Man Walking", "Repentance"

Fear Factory's second album Demanufacture is a masterpiece, one that has revolutionized modern metal with its blend of metal heaviness with industrial electronics, and death growls with clean singing. 3 years later, the band decided to follow it up with their third album Obsolete, an album that has expanded their concept album idea into a more storytelling motive, filled with different characters and acts.

And yes, I like it! Any fans new and old can enjoy a lot of this album, with the longtime listeners experiencing nostalgia. As highly selling as this album is, reception might've been divisive due to leaning a bit into nu metal territory. However, the excellent writing is what make this album essential. Basically, the band is following the then-common idea of dumping all traces of death metal for a more pop-ish mainstream path, while staying in industrial metal. Brushing aside the accessibility, the greatly written songs are worth listening to, and even pure metalheads should try at least one of them.

Trying to distance away from Demanufacture's sound while clinging onto its edge results in clumsiness for the opening track "Shock". I still enjoy the heavy aggression, though it's a little hard to do so. "Edgecrusher" is more enjoyable for an unusual reason. The tough lyrics and hip-hop beat sound quite odd in the band's attempt to discard their death metal roots, yet it brings me great delight. Guilty pleasure, much!? Then we have the more underground "Smasher/Devourer". That song and the surrounding two tracks introduce the characters in the concept. "Securitron (Police State 2000)" is the last part of that "character introduction" trilogy and has memorable riffs and structure. I say it's a brilliant song to introduce metal newcomers to extreme metal, starting off with poppy accessibility before digging into the heavier underground.

Another excellent highlight "Descent" is the closest we have to a poppy song in this album. One song that's slightly mediocre is "Hi-Tech Hate". However, "Freedom or Fire" makes up for that a lot with its nice heaviness after a drum 'n' bass intro. And holy f***ing sh*t, that groove is heavy! Near the 3-minute mark starts the breakdown that is a f***ing crusher! I swear that's the heaviest the band has gotten in this album.

The title track starts with a spoken-word intro by Gary Numan, whose hit single "Cars" would be perfectly covered by Fear Factory in the digipak edition of this album. However, that title track is a bit of a slipper-upper, though not really a true offender. The album's standard edition and story ends with a couple superb melodic highlights, starting with "Resurrection", a standout anthem with a mighty chorus and riffing. "Timelessness" is one of the greatest tracks here with amazing cleans by Burton C. Bell, despite being a keyboard-only ballad. This shows how diverse an extreme metal album can be, adding a melodic poppy soft ballad to break the tone.

In a way, you can consider the album a bit like Slayer at that time, in terms of adding nu metal influences into the sound each band is famous for. Not to brag, but I have a more advanced diverse taste in metal. Fear Factory is a band I both wish and don't wish I could've discovered them 10 years ago, along with Meshuggah. Essential metal bands though would've been unfitting for me when I was starting out with power metal. The album is slightly bad in a few songs, yet still a great experience!

Favorites: "Securitron (Police State 2000)", "Descent", "Freedom or Fire", "Resurrection", "Timelessness"

It takes some real determination to make an essential album that would revolutionize metal history. Setting aside the downfall of the more classic heavy metal genres like thrash, the 90s has made some astonishing masterpieces in other subgenres, a small few of which can be considered fantastic groundbreaking sh*t. An album that stunned the world is Fear Factory's second album Demanufacture! This is from a time when metal was expanding into a different variety of styles, and Fear Factory is one band that perfectly contributed to this diverse growth. Their debut album Soul of a New Machine displayed a never-before-heard mix of death growls and clean vocals, and extreme metal with electro-industrial. Those vocals, guitars, bass, drums, and electronics all create a newfound atmosphere to shock listeners worldwide!

Demanufacture shows the band evolving from their initial style with a perfect blend of their earlier brutality with a more melodic sound and futuristic keyboards. They often base their sound on their lyrical themes, in which humanity is being lost to technology. If Earth Crisis' debut from that year is about destroying machines, Demanufacture warns you about the dangers of destructive machinery. This legendary concept and sound covers the entire album throughout, and if mixing extreme, industrial, and melodic isn't considered revolutionary, I wouldn't know what is.

Already proving the album to be a classic, the title opener starts with synth atmosphere before a killer riff joins in, followed by bass and drums, all proving the band to be industrial metal legends! The crushing riffs and thundering drums perfectly stand alongside the amazing vocal charisma in the growls and cleans. Already showing how unbreakable the band is, "Self Bias Resistor" rises in heaviness, leading up to a killer ending for the track. "Zero Signal" is amazing with futuristic atmosphere before ending peacefully with a piano outro. Perhaps the most famous song by the band is "Replica". It's not my ultimate favorite song from the band, but its straight pace and killer chorus make that single a perfect one. It was later covered by symphonic metal band Epica. If you're not sure about that cover, don't be an Epica "Replica" replica skeptica! lol

There's a little more of the electro-industrial effects in "New Breed", while the mechanical heavy intensity reigns throughout. "Dog Day Sunrise" is an OK song, covering a track by one of Godflesh founder Justin Broadrick's former bands Head of David. The percussion is pretty easy to headbang to. Then "Body Hammer" is one of the more average tracks here, but it doesn't reduce the album's perfection at all. I can almost say the same thing about "Flashpoint". However, that's not to say any of the more average songs are bad. They're still great and make the album keep its 5-star rating. Though the percentage rating would probably be slightly over 95%.

The more furious "H-K (Hunter-Killer)" has fast adrenaline. Despite the name, "P*sschrist" is a total industrial mind-smasher. It starts dark and heavy before rising into epic drama. Alongside industrial samples and drumming, it then leads to more of the furious growls and apocalyptic cleans by Burton C. Bell, the latter especially the ending of atmospheric majesty. "Where is your savior now?" Finally, "A Therapy for Pain" is a dark nearly 10-minute epic showing how influential Fear Factory can be.

All in all, Demanufacture is a quite a masterpiece landmark in all of industrial metal. Not only has it pleased the 90s generation of metal, it can sure bring headbanging joy to future generations to come. For the modern metalheads out there, this is a must!

Favorites: "Demanufacture", "Replica", "New Breed", "H-K (Hunter-Killer)", "P*sschrist", "A Therapy for Pain"

I hate to admit this, but this is the worst release ever done by Fear Factory, worse than Transgression. BUT... Not all of it is bad. Fear is the Mindkiller is the transition release between Soul of a New Machine and Demanufacture, being a remix EP of a few tracks from the former. The remixes add more synths and programming to the deathly sound. They prove how well the band can stand in the line between death metal and industrial techno without leaning too much into one or the other, and that can't be denied.

The problem here is, the remixes sound too detached from the originals. As much as I consider Rhys Fulber a genius for his remixing skills, his electronic usage could've been better played and less distorted, with a more dimensional balance.

"Martyr (Suffer B****rd Mix)" is actually a promising start, the way a remix is supposed to sound, more industrial while staying metal. Fear Factory can really maintain their extreme industrial metal in these remixes. H*ll, this is probably close to proto-cyber metal! A great throwback for longtime Fear Factory fans. There are two remixes of "Self Immolation", starting with the "Vein Tap Mix" that doesn't work as well as the second one which we will talk about shortly.

"Scapegoat (Pigf*** Mix)" manages to maintain the best of Burton C. Bell's harsh growls and clean singing, but it's still as flawed as the original song with too much industrial repetition. "Scumgrief" (Deep Dub Trauma Mix) starts off promising with its original proto-melodeath riffing. However, the overuse of techno beats can be quite traumatic for the more deathly metalheads. On the other hand, the more atmospheric sounds in "Self Immolation (Liquid Sky mix)" have paid off well. The death metal aggression is in perfect flow with the techno groove, another remix saving the EP from being a total disaster. The first edition includes the original "Self Immolation" from the debut.

Fear is the Mindkiller is a tough release to get attached to for pure metalheads. The remixing really could've been done better, and I can say the same about the rhythm and some vocals. Still it's an all right trip to get you geared up for the power and glory of Demanufacture, if you're going through the band's discography chronologically....

Favorites (only ones I truly like): "Martyr (Suffer B****rd Mix)", "Self Immolation (Liquid Sky mix)"

In the somewhat distant past of the year 1992, metal genres were kind of at war. Before that year, thrash/speed metal were on the rise, and then came death metal/grindcore, and finally, industrial/alternative metal. Those 3 genre categories were competing for the reign, and the first one lost its fame, the second one became underground, and the third one became mainstream. One band was up to mixing the extreme underground with one of the metal genres hitting commercial success those days...

Back in those times, most metal bands seemed to focus on making compositions based on a particular riff, rather than full-fledged arrangement. Released in the same year as the debut of another band that started off as death metal (Amorphis), Fear Factory's debut Soul of a New Machine built their sound from a technological concept. The tone and arrangement are as important as the composition in the songs, and that then-rare aspect is what made this band unique in their debut, showing that there's a little more to metal than just guitars and vocals in front and bass and drums in back. Industrial ambience, spoken samples, and more bass prominence make their entrance!

The opening track "Martyr" already shows the band's audacity of beginning with a verse of brutal guitar and growls and then switching to a clean bridge midway through. Well played! Personal relationships cover the lyrics for that song and "Leechmaster", the latter being heavier and deathlier. The criminal justice system has its flaws pointed out in "Scapegoat". Then "Crisis" adds clean singing over heavy chords. "Crash Test" is about lab animal tests, so I'm guessing the "crash" is from the death metal crashing.

"Flesh Hold" continues the band's rage against the justice system. Then they tackle hypocrisy in religion in "Lifeblind", combining the death metal of Hypocrisy at that time with industrial. "Scumgrief" marks the return to the full form of the balance between clean hooks and deathly heaviness. The percussion intermission "Natividad" was written in memory of the late mother of guitarist Dino Cazares. Then "Big God/Raped Souls" continues the band's attack on religion's downsides. The more political "Arise Above Oppression" has more of the album's destructive side.

"Self Immolation" emphasizes on industrial metal's signature aspects of mechanical rhythm and audio samples, showing the genre's effective development progress. "Suffer Age" starts with tight guitar before the bass and drums join along with background cleans. The riffing continues to expand alongside the drums. Then finally, EXPLOSIVE DEATH METAL CHAOS!!!! The dominant drums and vocals work with the guitars to tear this f***ing place apart! They stay steady despite the samples and tempo changes. Then there's a clean bridge before more of the deathliness. It ends a bit abruptly, but still worth some fun in a mosh pit. There's melodic treasure to be found in the deathly sea midway through "W.O.E." Then "Desecrate" switches to something different, but the usual death metal rampage. The most severe growls from vocalist Burton C. Bell come in "Escape Confusion", right from the most deathly beginning. "Manipulation" unleashes the last of the deathly destruction for this album.

So this band's journey all started with the idea of combining the industrial metal of Godflesh and the deathgrind of Napalm Death into their own unique mix with mechanical riffing with some bits of melodic alt-metal and groove metal. It's a pretty great fresh idea that was never tried before and has proven highly influential. Of course, the issue here is the big amount of tracks (17) that many people can't remember all of. However, it's so cryptic and unique that your mind won't turn away from such creativity and aggression that was uncommon outside the underground in the early 90s. Not too over-the-top while not too accessible, this band sure knows how to conceive and present such a game-changer. Once rare but now more common is unique genius....

Favorites: "Martyr", "Leechmaster", "Crisis", "Scumgrief", "Self Immolation", "Suffer Age", "W.O.E.", "Escape Confusion"

Beginning humble and continuing as legends, Zao has been known as known as a true developer of Christian metalcore. The humble beginning comes from 1995 debut All Else Failed. Back then, their lead vocalist was Shawn Jonas, who would later form Symphony in Peril. He replaced original vocalist Eric Reeder who wrote most of the album's lyrics but left before recording. Jonas, along with Roy Goudy (guitars), Mic Cox (bass), and Jesse Smith (drums), changed the scene of Christian hardcore by adding more punk and metal elements. The lyrics are more straight in the search of lost truth. Though a bit of a dud, All Else Failed is where Zao's enjoyable history begins...

I was hoping to find a lot to enjoy from their debut, considering how much I love the 3 albums after this. I can especially give a thumbs-up to The Splinter Shards the Birth of Separation, the first album I've listened to from this band, with brilliant highlights including a few songs re-recorded. Sadly, as cohesive as All Else Failed is, it doesn't reach that solid mark. Don't get me wrong though. Smith's drumming is the cold hard key to the band's earlier sound. Cox's bass is audible though a little more effect-laden than necessary. Goudy's guitars are performed with heart and soul, and so are the screaming vocals of Jonas in full power that's worth praising. The music is filled with intense emotion! But the production is very much subpar compared to other albums like Where Blood and Fire Bring Rest, while being satisfying nonetheless.

"Resistance" has some of the best vocals here, along with early metalcore riffing that can serve as a basis for bands like Haste the Day. And another standout is "In Loving Kindness", having a short bass section before some of the best rapid drumming found in 90s metalcore. There are great lyrics in "Endure" telling about the surviving truth of Christianity, "It has been proven, It shall remain, This faith has stood the test, It persists through conflict, Through the revolts against its ways, Nothing has held true like this."

"Growing In Grace" goes on in good pace, but then it abruptly stops for an ambient bass. It's almost like interrupting a rollercoaster ride while still on top. Within the weakness though, some strong light shines in the acoustic outro. One of the best moments in the album, though in a song that I would never consider a highlight. "Foresight" displays some of the band's Christian influences as much as Embodyment, though much different from that band in style. "PS 77" is a hard-hitting early metallic hardcore gem. The title must be referring to a public school one of the band members went to. "Exchange" is not highly different, but it shows Zao's creativity.

Another favorite, "In These Times of Silence" shows how much this band can achieved in American hardcore. However, that song and the simpler "A Simple Reminder" do not appear in the album's 2003 re-recording. The 12-minute title epic is the longest track by the band, and one of the longest metalcore epics I've ever encountered. They unleash everything that they can in the first 8 minutes, then after a one-minute break, a 3-minute acoustic ending plays, along with a bit of clean vocals. Epic!

I had to be realistic when considering how much praise I'm comfortable giving this band's debut. All Else Failed set the right path for the band's mighty metalcore sound, and for Jesse Smith to keep going after the original members quit. But with all that said, it's not as strong their next album and the Dan Weyandt era, while not too bad at all....

Favorites: "Resistance", "In Loving Kindness", "PS 77", "In These Times of Silence", "All Else Failed"

Don't you just miss the good ol' days of "Oh-wah-ah-ah-ah"?! Disturbed has released their new album Divisive this year, and in the months leading up to its release, people were wondering what direction they would take. The longtime fans feared that the band would continue the recent melodic radio hit route. Then a single popped up (I'll tell you what it is soon) that hinted at something once thought far-fetched, the return of their earlier heaviness! The album that track would appear in is a pleasant surprise...

I ended up having COVID at the time when I got this album, a week after its release, and I can understand the anger the band had with the challenges caused by the literal sickness. The rage is really put into their work, especially in the first half, though after that, there seems to be an unsettling turn.

The aforementioned single "Hey You" is a jaw dropper and kicker. There's f***ing great bad-a** power here, reminding me of the 2000s albums by this band. It's definitely an original song instead of a cover for a certain Bachman Turner Overdrive song. Thumbs up for that! There's a divisive line in heavier alternative music between the metal of this band and the rock of Shinedown, and I prefer to stay in the former side. But the real division is what this song describes in the lyrics, such as ongoing wars and protests, so wake up and fight the division! "Bad Man" sounds like an Indestructible outtake. They didn't have to build up the glory in an intro, getting straight to heavy rhythm. The melodic chorus is leveled up by David Draiman's vocal power in triumph. The title track follows with the usual rough energy.

"Unstoppable" shows that the band still has what it takes by f***ing throwing back to Disturbed's earlier days of 20 years ago, hard-hitting like a b***h! "Love to Hate" marks the end of the throwback first half to the band's legacy. They mix old and new, as the vocals sound cleaner while still rough. Draiman's lyrics once again tackle political frustration. "Feeding the Fire" is where the band returns to what they had in their previous two albums, though it sounds a bit addictive. "Don't Tell Me" is the biggest surprise here, a ballad featuring Ann Wilson of Heart. Fans of Draiman-fronted ballads might like it along with Dan Donegan's shredding, but to the heavier ear, it's just soft bullsh*t.

"Take Back Your Life" is another filler track that's not too bad while not having much memorable power. There's more energetic bass and drums in an attempt to save the track's grace with heaviness. The heavier "Part of Me" ends up coming out as mediocre. Draiman tries to sound more rough and less clean, but it can't beat the album's first half. "Won’t Back Down" ends the album as a strong headbanger, bringing back elements of their first 3 albums, complete with some of the earlier "OW" and "get up".

Disturbed made a good comeback with this album, though it can be quite...divisive. The heavier foundation is back to stability in the first half, though the second half brings back their recent soft melodic side. If you're up for more of their strong earlier heaviness, you're in for a treat with a slight trick....

Favorites: "Hey You", "Bad Man", "Unstoppable", "Love to Hate", "Won't Back Down"

Have you ever wondered if there are any bands you believe the new harsher extreme-core bands like Lorna Shore can't do without? One band almost has the potential of standing their historical ground, Spread the Disease! Their sophomore finale album The Sheer Force of Inertia has an interesting idea of adding black metal elements to metalcore/early deathcore, a bit like what Underoath did at that time. However, ambient/electronic elements have been added into the cauldron that can be frustrating...

Now while I have no problem with different sounds added in a metal style, the problem is the album's inconsistent structure. Only slightly over half of the album is real metal, and each of the 4 songs is surrounded by interludes, and killing off the intense energy. If it was up to me, I would edit the album so that only the songs would be in, while the interludes are taken out, but all we would have is an over 20-minute EP, because of that annoying Dead World Collusion-like sequence. That aside, the songs here have an awesome extreme progressive metalcore sound with black/death metal/hardcore triumph. Riff destruction, harsh vocals, and extreme production are all in violent chaos!

After the first sh*tty interlude, "The Electron Compulsion Theory" starts the action as a 9 and a half minute extreme metalcore epic highlight. Halfway through, things go soft and calm with didgeridoo and a background choir. Then we have an inevitable buildup back to the extreme. Honestly, the second interlude that follows should've been part of the end instead of separated. Never mind, at least "Responding to a Current Lack of Heat" continues the sound as heavy as This Day Forward at that time, maybe heavier.

The next couple full songs are good but don't reach the greatness of the first two. The final track would certainly be a laughingstock ending for this band, "Jesus Hotline Phone Call", an 8-minute series of prank calls.

OK, let me just clarify that the interludes are pleasant and calm at times, and can often be glitchy, but it's terrible that they're placed between each and every song, making even the open-minded confused. This band should've just released the 4 real songs as an EP. I would've loved their extreme progressive metalcore sound much more. I just hope the members of the band who have moved on to other bands realized would think of how they could've made this album better. It's f***ing clear what it is....

Favorites: "The Electron Compulsion Theory", "Responding to a Current Lack of Heat"

When that YouTube commenter recommended to me some albums by Zao, one of those releases was a split between that band and Training for Utopia. The commenter especially enjoys one song from the EP that was re-recorded in their next album Liberate Te Ex Inferis, but to be honest, I didn't really like that version, I prefer the album version much more. I'll tell you what that song is soon...

Despite that, this EP is quite fun to listen to. Not only do you get to hear a little more of Zao besides the albums, but also a different band with vocalist Ryan Clark who would later form Demon Hunter and release that band's debut in 2002.

Training for Utopia would appear first in the EP with the fun opener "Modus Operandi". The aforementioned Zao song, "Skin Like Winter", I honestly think is a poorly done demo, and once again, the later album version does better justice. There should've been some proper time and budget to work on that version in my opinion. However, this is made up for by Training for Utopia's nearly 8-minute epic "Police John, Police Red". That's some of the strongest content and length I've heard from late 90s metalcore. It starts with a beautiful guitar intro complete with soft vocals, then everything gets heavier and more chaotic, leading up to an epic climax with thunderous roars of "COME ARMAGEDDON!!!" The short yet heavy Zao song "Walk On By, Walk On Me" has a bit of Clark's roars alongside the screaming of Dan Weyandt. A much better song from Zao!

All in all, the split's quality is kind of half-and-half in the songs. I think I can find the best vocals from Ryan Clark and the best drums from Jesse Smith, with the bassists and guitarists of both bands shining well. While this EP isn't at an excellent level for me, Christian metalheads who want to see both bands in a release would be like "Hallelujah!"

Favorites: "Police John, Police Red", "Walk On By, Walk On Me"

Excessive Force's debut album Conquer Your World was nothing but an industrial rock/dance album I couldn't really get into. However, with one more album Gentle Death, they seemed to have taken a better step, metallic enough to be metal. There are a few good tunes worth commenting on, but is it worth money for buyers? I don't know... Also, why am I getting Minecraft vibes from that album cover?

Once again, this is a side-project by KMFDM's Sascha Konietzko. However, Buzz McCoy had already left the project before this album, and KMFDM bandmate Günter Schulz added guitar to some tracks. Well there seems to be less guitar than in that KMFDM album Nihil, but at least it's more than Excessive Force's debut.

Let's just talk about the few highlights here: "Blitzkrieg (Sturzkampf)" rocks with the riffing that KMFDM would have in Nihil, with some sick kicks and licks from Schulz and great industrial power from the rest of the crew. You'll especially find greatness in "Divebomb" that at one point makes a subtle brief turn into the "Hall of the Mountain King", almost like what Savatage did in their 1987 album. I love it! Fast forward to "Queen B***h" where one of the vocalists Liz Torres shines through fast techno rage. Silly yet fun!

While many of the songs aren't as great those 3, the worst is "Leather Clad Dub", one of the most sh*tty remixes I've heard! I'll spare you the dreaded details. Just skip that stinker and other tiresome tracks, and enjoy the highlights of the final album from an average spin-off of KMFDM. Nihil would have these guys' talent much stronger than this....

Favorites: "Blitzkrieg (Sturzkampf)", "Divebomb", "Queen B***h"

I think I've mentioned this before, but I enjoy these transitional kinds of releases between two of a band's eras. This EP works as the missing piece of the stylistic puzzle, between the industrial rock/dance of that Excessive Force album and industrial death-doom of that Dead World album. And this Pitchshifter release is much better than those two...

In truth though, this EP Submit can be considered the transitional release between Pitchshifter's sludge-ish debut and the later material's catchiness. There are different eras that the band have covered and foreshadowed in this release, doing it all with confidence. There's beat in the music and purpose in the writing!

"Gritter" is a brilliant favorite of mine from this EP. It brings in some groove momentum and their earlier deathly vibe, the latter caused by crushing downtuned riffing and deep growling vocals. However, it sounds closer to Godflesh than the more deathly Dead World. JS Clayden took over on vocals after his brother MD put his sole focus on bass. "Deconstruction" is a different highlight with gravelly vocals and repetitive guitar, hinting at their next album. A sure sign of leaving behind their Godflesh influences.

The next track "New Flesh P.S.I." is an early-Godflesh-infused remix of a song from their debut Industrial. "B****rdiser" levels things up a bit, but the chorus sounds like a rip-off of Godflesh's "Like Rats". Those two remixes appeared in their earlier single "Death Industrial" to show the band's earlier evolution.

"Dry Riser Inlet" is another highlight that continues the band's later hints from "Deconstruction". The last song before the hidden track "Tendrill" once again drills through with the band's deathly industrial metal statement. "Silo" is the instrumental hidden track that is quite repetitive and doesn't add much greatness. I won't say it's too much of a stinker, but it's probably best to just stop during the long silence before the hidden track.

"Submit" is a pretty great step up compared to those other two early 90s industrial metal releases I've just reviewed. It's as heavy and crushing as Godflesh at that time, like A LOT, though I would argue about how Pitchshifter used their influences. While not as super-memorable as classics within the genre, Submit is something you can't overlook...

Favorites: "Gritter", "Deconstruction", "Dry Riser Inlet", "Tendrill"

Industrial metal can be quite a hit-and-miss for me, despite my passion in The Sphere clan, whether you find bands from America or Europe or wherever else. There are some project that mix the genre with others, such as deathgrind/hardcore for Meathook Seed. Not a lot of bands can take that mix seriously, like this band, Dead World. Led by art director for Relapse Records, Jonathan Canady, the band's debut album Collusion is basically a collection of 5 industrial metal/death-doom tracks and 5 ambient interludes. They can play something unique yet not working out as much as it should...

In a cyclical monotone attempt at industrial death-doom, they slow down the death metal riffing and rhythm and ditched the bass drums. While the riffing drifts slowly, there's occasional speed in the drive. Something interesting is, Collusion is the band's only one of their albums to have a real drummer instead of a drum machine, which detracts the cold power of industrial metal while packing some small punches into the percussion. The guitar is rough while being brought forward by the bass, the latter not bursting out as much as European industrial metal bands who know one of their signature features. It's quite lose in the reverb that soaks down the growling and percussion. With barely a lot of groove, we have kind of a treacherous result.

Only two tracks work as highlights; one of my favorite songs of this style "El Shaddi Sanctimony" and one of the interludes "Regina Confessorum", the latter having just guitar and bass in a stream of samples. Other than that, Dead World was, in 1992, just in an intermediate level of dark industrial metal, not yet building up to experienced heights. You can consider Collusion a historical blend of genres, but just not worth listening pleasure. Just take my word for this poor sh*t....

Favorites (only songs I like): "El Shaddi Sanctimony", "Regina Confessorum"

Excessive Force was a side project created by KMFDM's Sascha Konietzko and My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult's Buzz McCoy. It should be noted that is before KMFDM started added more prominent metal elements, so all you can find from Excessive Force's debut is industrial rock/dance, sometimes close to house music, and it's only good hands of less heavy industrial fans. However, there's some of the heavy guitar groove and vocal distortion to go with the repetitive dance, and the best highlight for that is "Ride the Bomb". A decently great track from a sh*tty dance album that has blown me off instead of blown me away....

Favorites (only one song I like): "Ride the Bomb"

To be honest, I wasn't sure about giving this Strife album In This Defiance a listen and a review because their debut One Truth wasn't all that great and I even thought it was too hardcore to be metal, hence that judgement submission. But when I put this album on play, boy was I blown away! This is a higher, more metallic step from their debut, and it has just what I'm looking for from this band.

Yep, everything is at the right tone for Strife. This is a full tight metallic hardcore sound with brisk tempos. Rick Rodney has his hardcore bellowing skills that are often hard to understand, but at the same time, so compelling.

Beginning the album is a 3-minute "Intro" of horror movie sound effects that almost makes the album a soundtrack for such a film. Then after that, the wait is over, with "Waiting" blasting off with its metal/hardcore sound that bands such as All That Remains, 36 Crazyfists, Eighteen Visions, and Cave In can't do without. The hardcore force continues in "Force of Change", which actually has a bit of a Winds of Plague vibe in the riffing, though obviously not deathly or symphonic.

"Stand as One (Redemption)" has vague yet powerful lyrics in emotional focus ("Search inside and you will find the answers lie within the reach of those who try"). Same with "Grey", not identifiable but quite adamant ("The future is dead for many of those who have fallen refusing to let it go"). The amazing highlight "Will to Die" has a bit of a Black Sabbath kind of soundscape, with a few prominent guests assisting in the action; ex-Sepultura drummer Igor Cavalera, Fear Factory guitarist Dino Cazares, and most notably, Deftones vocalist Chino Moreno. Another compelling song here is "Blistered". Then "Forgotten One" adds a bit of mid-80s Voivod speed into their sound.

"Wish I Knew" has reminded me that I need a break from the modern poppy metalcore of Issues and We Came as Romans, so I can dive into more hardcore stuff like this. "To an End" is one of the most remarkable hardcore bursts ever. "Overthrow" would once again help the hardcore side of my metalcore taste overthrow the modern side of bands like Veil of Maya. The "Outro" is just 16 minutes of horror movie sounds just like the intro. I think they only added their so the album wouldn't be so short like just a half-hour.

Those pointless interludes don't affect the rest of this album perfection that makes In This Defiance an astonishing stunner. This is standard E-tuned thrashy metal/hardcore at its best. I'm glad to find the greatness of Strife!

Favorites: "Waiting", "Force of Change", "Stand as One (Redemption)", "Will to Die", "Wish I Knew", "To an End"