Fear My Thoughts "The Great Collapse" CD
[Lifeforce]
Jesus fucking Christ this rules! I was expecting something more metalcore, but after a slick little clean intro these cats blast into some pounding fucking death metal that's molded after the melodic Swedish styles, but just as much Entombed/Dismember as In Flames. I love it! It's heavy as fuck but still full of emphatic melodies and great songwriting, with forceful vocal growls and some midrange screams as well. Even the chunky breakdown riffing is somehow 10 times better than most of these bands. But there's not much of that, there are a lot of tempo changes from tremolo picking to midpaced rhythms or slower chords, etc. "Rituals" is one of the catchier tracks that's a bit more modern in style, but damn if the writing and the ripping solo don't make it light years better than any American bands playing this style of metal. "Mission Immortality" uses some cool dissonant chords and brings in some nice singing vocals as well, during a much thicker melodic break that sounds unlike anything else on the disc. Several songs hit six minutes, and that's the only slight setback here, as not all of 'em pull that weight off, so it can get a little bit tiresome since there's not a lot of variety on the record. The recording is nice and thick, but it could use touching up to employ even more sheer force. I like the sound of the drums and vocals, but there's a gap where the bass lacks and sometimes the guitars get slightly thin with treble, even though they're really quite heavy (and fluid during the dual guitar runs). Thickening it up just a tad would add a bit more clarity to the tightness of the performances. The layout is crammed with abstract textures and a consistent color scheme, and I think it looks quite good. Everything is nice and clean and well organized, etc. The lyrics are a mix of more personal observations as well as bitter socio-political commentary that tends to deal with current events such as war and the overlooked fragility of human life. "Consumption how bitter sweet, Satisfaction can't be gained through the possession of useless goods, The desire to get and possess increases the fear to lose it all, It paralyzes all my action, More, more, even more..." Good stuff. There's not a lot to it and a few songs are a little redundant, but there are no bad songs here, and pound for pound this thing kicks the shit out of most of its competition. Definitely recommended for those looking for proof that this niche of the genre still has some life left in it. (7/10)
Running time - 43:16, Tracks: 10
[Notable tracks: The Great Collapse, Rituals, Mission Immortality]
Fear My Thoughts - http://www.fearmythoughts.com

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