Fear Factory – Mechanize

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Reuniting guitar player Dino Cazares and vocalist Burton C. Bell for the first time since 2002 and the Digimortal album (2001), the recording of Mechanize forced the postponement of Summer 2009 tour dates, but 2010 finally sees them get underway. With a reputation as innovators and pioneers in extreme metal Mechnize is likely to divide listeners. It will immediately appeal to fans of their most successful albums who want more of the same, but those looking for the band to redefine their sound will find it sadly lacking. Not as clever as Obsolete, not as immediate as Transgression, and not as original as Digimortal, it’s basically a retreading of Demanufacture and Archetype, and although it’s more accessible than their out-and-out extreme work like Soul of A New Machine, it’s ultimately a terribly boring album. In fact, take the one-riff instrumental Metallic Division and repeat 30 times (1.5 minutes long, 45-minute album) and the result won’t be too dissimilar to the album as it is, minus the vocals. It’s really not the triumphant return it should have been, and although fans will be ecstatic at any new Fear Factory music at all, and especially new live shows, their place in metal’s hierarchy of ground-breaking artists has taken a hit with this release.

Written by Andy Lye
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