Jun
30
Album Review: Fear Factory-Mechanize
With Dino Cazares and Burton C. Bell reigniting their collaborative bromance, it seemed all was right in the metal world…until this comeback was almost torpedoed by the remaining 2/4ths of the original Fear Factory lineup who happen to be peddling Fear Factory lite on their own ill-starred Arkaea. With the original band’s progeny now split between fore mentioned Arkaea and Divine Heresy, one can almost imagine a soap opera of metallic proportions brewing. Lest we succumb to the strife that has plagued the quartet for ages now, here comes “Mechanize” to restore our faith in the group’s storied legacy. With Cazares showcasing his patented grooving guitar play and Burton C. Bell back to screaming, all that’s left is a coupla ex members of Strapping Young Lad to fill in the rhythm section, namely Gene Hoglan and Byron Stroud. With the powers of two pioneering 90s metal bands combined—Fear factory and Strapping—a joyous entree is now served our ears.
Opening with the straightforward affair that’s the title track, the song “Mechanize” hammers away with machinelike efficiency until “Industrial Discipline” takes up its cudgels and continues hammering our earlobes. To match the band’s machine-like aesthete, note how a lot of the songs here reflect have un, ‘industrial’ themed titles. (Industrial Discipline?) It’s camp of the highest order, in this writer’s opinion, but fun nonetheless. “Far campaign,” “Powershifter,” “Oxidizer,” and the venomous “Christploitation” are all cut from the same mold: jarring riffs, pummeling drums, and throaty screams that could shatter glass. Whether you call this industrial groove or the progenitor of metalcore, it’s consistent to the point of formulaic by-the-numbers redundance, which explains why the album’s middle tends to blur into a dizzying stretch of musical aggression.
Surprise, surprise, Fear factory lend this latest the ultimate finishing touch with the two part wonder that’s “Designing The Enemy” and the instrumental segue “Metallic Division” before the tender “Final Exit” winds the whole affair down. If this album were released a year early, it would’ve been perfect as an OST to Terminator:Salvation, disappointing as that movie was. Anyway, whether you’re new to this band or an expectant fan, “Mechanize” won’t disappoint. It’s a pummeling release that will knock you to the ground and beg for ultimate submission.
-Miguel
