This Ending - Inside the Machine
Metal Blade Records - SPV CD O85 -105332 - 4th December 2006
by Tom Strutton
This Ending is the reincarnation of '90s melodeath outfit A Canorous Quintet, which disbanded in 1998. Despite being early players in the development of the Gothenburg sound, A Canorous Quintet fell short of the level of commercial success attained by their pioneering melodeath peers. Newly reformed under the moniker The Plague(later changed to This Ending), their debut lp (or comeback - whichever way you'd prefer to look at it) released in 2006 was assuredly anticipated and faced high expectations. Given the change in name, one is encouraged to believe that This Ending would prefer to start with a clean slate, and will probably get fed up to the teeth with reading reviews of Inside the Machine that begin by retracing the former band's history. Sadly, such is the state of journalism, which is as replete with irritating conventions as the next publicly scrutinised discipline.
On second thoughts, perhaps it wouldn't be too much of a bad idea to begin this review with a 300+word biography - it would certainly rectify the problem of having to think of different ways to say that Inside the Machine is uncompromisingly bland. Riffs such as the ones you will find here simply don't cut it, especially considering the wealth of inventive riffs the '00s decade has given us so far (hands down the best decade for metal yet). Compensating for the colorless guitar work, Frederik Andersson's tight drumming is sensitive, tasteful and brutal. Similarly, there is nothing offputting about Marten Hansen's vocal performance, although some may reasonably argue that it lacks character and seems to be serving a function out of necessity rather than making an artistic contribution. There is no real force behind the production, which, while suitably bleak and cold in harmony with Hansen's nihilistic ranting, leaves a feeling of halfway emptiness where one should be left feeling dirty and abused (well, at least if you're into aural sadism like me). In terms of songwriting, Inside the Machine gives a masterclass in encouraging it's listeners to reach for the skip button on their player.
There is a line dividing bands that do melodic death metal well and those that treat it like paint-by-numbers. This Ending find themselves firmly in the latter camp, which is currently overpopulated to the point of imploding. If you are a hardcore fanboy of this genre, check out Inside the Machine, love it, and duly start sending me hate mail. If you feel strongly that the Gothenburg sound has overstayed its welcome and is giving birth to pastiches of itself, avoid this like the plague.
Official This Ending Website
Official Metal Blade Records Website
Metal Blade Records - SPV CD O85 -105332 - 4th December 2006
by Tom Strutton
This Ending is the reincarnation of '90s melodeath outfit A Canorous Quintet, which disbanded in 1998. Despite being early players in the development of the Gothenburg sound, A Canorous Quintet fell short of the level of commercial success attained by their pioneering melodeath peers. Newly reformed under the moniker The Plague(later changed to This Ending), their debut lp (or comeback - whichever way you'd prefer to look at it) released in 2006 was assuredly anticipated and faced high expectations. Given the change in name, one is encouraged to believe that This Ending would prefer to start with a clean slate, and will probably get fed up to the teeth with reading reviews of Inside the Machine that begin by retracing the former band's history. Sadly, such is the state of journalism, which is as replete with irritating conventions as the next publicly scrutinised discipline.
On second thoughts, perhaps it wouldn't be too much of a bad idea to begin this review with a 300+word biography - it would certainly rectify the problem of having to think of different ways to say that Inside the Machine is uncompromisingly bland. Riffs such as the ones you will find here simply don't cut it, especially considering the wealth of inventive riffs the '00s decade has given us so far (hands down the best decade for metal yet). Compensating for the colorless guitar work, Frederik Andersson's tight drumming is sensitive, tasteful and brutal. Similarly, there is nothing offputting about Marten Hansen's vocal performance, although some may reasonably argue that it lacks character and seems to be serving a function out of necessity rather than making an artistic contribution. There is no real force behind the production, which, while suitably bleak and cold in harmony with Hansen's nihilistic ranting, leaves a feeling of halfway emptiness where one should be left feeling dirty and abused (well, at least if you're into aural sadism like me). In terms of songwriting, Inside the Machine gives a masterclass in encouraging it's listeners to reach for the skip button on their player.
There is a line dividing bands that do melodic death metal well and those that treat it like paint-by-numbers. This Ending find themselves firmly in the latter camp, which is currently overpopulated to the point of imploding. If you are a hardcore fanboy of this genre, check out Inside the Machine, love it, and duly start sending me hate mail. If you feel strongly that the Gothenburg sound has overstayed its welcome and is giving birth to pastiches of itself, avoid this like the plague.
Official This Ending Website
Official Metal Blade Records Website
classic, especially the last one.
