Soilwork - Stabbing The Drama
Nuclear Blast - NB 1377-2 - 2005
By Philip Whitehouse
While I fully anticipate that a horde of enraged extreme metal fans will soon be beating a path to my door with flaming torches and pitchforks firmly in hand, I'm still going to go right ahead and say this - Soilwork's latest album is, for me, their best since A Predator's Portrait. Of course, it's hardly fair to compare Stabbing The Drama to that quintessential slice of Gothenburg melo-death, since Soilwork have moved on from that sound into new territories - and no, they haven't jumped on the burnt-out nu-metal bandwagon either, whatever the elitists may say. So, while I have a few moments before I board up the windows, stock up on Pot Noodles and check my ammunition for the siege that is surely to come, let me explain why I like this album enough to stake my well-being on it...
Firstly, I am no fan of synths in metal. I can let Devin get away with it, 'cos he's got Gene Hoglan with him. But generally, synths put me off. But Soilwork have shown over the last couple of releases that synths can sit comfortably within the framework of a balls-out metal number - filling out the sound, supporting the atmosphere, and giving rise to sublime counter-melodies. These work especially well when the melodies inherent in the song-writing are so firmly entrenched with feeling and purpose as they are here. The surging momentum behind the climax of the opening title track is impossible to deny, as is the haunting beauty in the chorus of 'The Crestfallen'.
Ah yes, the choruses. Soilwork have moved in a somewhat heavier direction here than on their ill-recieved last record, but that doesn't mean they've ditched the clean vocals entirely. And as far as I'm concerned, that's a good thing. Alright, so twenty seconds of 'The Crestfallen' sound vaguely post-grunge esque, but when the choruses are so immediately memorable and epic-sounding, can you really hold twenty seconds against the band? Especially since speedy thrash track 'Stalemate' rocks like a motherfucker, and blastbeat-happy 'Blind Eye Halo' (with it's uber-low-death-vox refrain) is the heaviest thing Soilwork have thrown our way in ages.
Okay, so there's nothing here that has the same pyroclastic blast as 'Like The Average Stalker', but the slick production has a hell of a kick (despite some watery-sounding cymbals), the songwriting has been fine-tuned to a point where every single passage flows seamlessly from the last, there are some great leads and excellent riffage, the drumming is of exceptional standard (at last, a drummer who understands that you can accentuate and colour the song, rather than just punctuate it) and Speed's vocal performance reaches a new height of diversity and passion.
This is going to spinning in my CD player for quite some time to come. Soilwork have steadfastly and unwaveringly progressed with their music to write the music that they want to write. As a result, this sounds like a more comfortable, passionate, and urgent Soilwork, surging towards wherever their experimentation will take them next. Anybody unwilling to come along for the ride is surely more than welcome to keep wearing out the groove on their copy of Steelbath Suicide...
8.5/10
PS : For a somewhat less forgiving opinion on this latest release, here's Jason Jordan's review of Stabbing The Drama.
Soilwork Official Website
Nuclear Blast Records
Nuclear Blast - NB 1377-2 - 2005
By Philip Whitehouse
While I fully anticipate that a horde of enraged extreme metal fans will soon be beating a path to my door with flaming torches and pitchforks firmly in hand, I'm still going to go right ahead and say this - Soilwork's latest album is, for me, their best since A Predator's Portrait. Of course, it's hardly fair to compare Stabbing The Drama to that quintessential slice of Gothenburg melo-death, since Soilwork have moved on from that sound into new territories - and no, they haven't jumped on the burnt-out nu-metal bandwagon either, whatever the elitists may say. So, while I have a few moments before I board up the windows, stock up on Pot Noodles and check my ammunition for the siege that is surely to come, let me explain why I like this album enough to stake my well-being on it...
Firstly, I am no fan of synths in metal. I can let Devin get away with it, 'cos he's got Gene Hoglan with him. But generally, synths put me off. But Soilwork have shown over the last couple of releases that synths can sit comfortably within the framework of a balls-out metal number - filling out the sound, supporting the atmosphere, and giving rise to sublime counter-melodies. These work especially well when the melodies inherent in the song-writing are so firmly entrenched with feeling and purpose as they are here. The surging momentum behind the climax of the opening title track is impossible to deny, as is the haunting beauty in the chorus of 'The Crestfallen'.
Ah yes, the choruses. Soilwork have moved in a somewhat heavier direction here than on their ill-recieved last record, but that doesn't mean they've ditched the clean vocals entirely. And as far as I'm concerned, that's a good thing. Alright, so twenty seconds of 'The Crestfallen' sound vaguely post-grunge esque, but when the choruses are so immediately memorable and epic-sounding, can you really hold twenty seconds against the band? Especially since speedy thrash track 'Stalemate' rocks like a motherfucker, and blastbeat-happy 'Blind Eye Halo' (with it's uber-low-death-vox refrain) is the heaviest thing Soilwork have thrown our way in ages.
Okay, so there's nothing here that has the same pyroclastic blast as 'Like The Average Stalker', but the slick production has a hell of a kick (despite some watery-sounding cymbals), the songwriting has been fine-tuned to a point where every single passage flows seamlessly from the last, there are some great leads and excellent riffage, the drumming is of exceptional standard (at last, a drummer who understands that you can accentuate and colour the song, rather than just punctuate it) and Speed's vocal performance reaches a new height of diversity and passion.
This is going to spinning in my CD player for quite some time to come. Soilwork have steadfastly and unwaveringly progressed with their music to write the music that they want to write. As a result, this sounds like a more comfortable, passionate, and urgent Soilwork, surging towards wherever their experimentation will take them next. Anybody unwilling to come along for the ride is surely more than welcome to keep wearing out the groove on their copy of Steelbath Suicide...
8.5/10
PS : For a somewhat less forgiving opinion on this latest release, here's Jason Jordan's review of Stabbing The Drama.
Soilwork Official Website
Nuclear Blast Records
