Reviewed - 08/15/05
Hell
Sweet Hell
[Lifeforce Records]
My absolute favorite melodic death metal album of all time is Darkane's debut, "Rusted Angel." The sheer magnitude of that album, from the diversity of its arrangements to the passion of its vocalist to the merits of a musical masterpiece released in what was still the infancy of melodic death metal, still amazes me to this day. And while I must admit to not having followed Darkane much since – I heard a few mp3s from "Insanity," but nothing impressed me like "Rusted Angel" – I continue to turn back towards that debut album whenever I find myself craving good melodic death metal.
But that doesn't mean I want every band to sound like Darkane.
Melodic death metal has become the new power metal – a stagnant musical style that has began to breed musicians with no desire to play anything that hasn't already been played before. Nowadays, you can't throw a rock into the air without running the risk of striking a disciple of At the Gates or late Carcass.
And "Hell Sweet Hell," the fourth studio album by the quintet Fear My Thoughts, could certainly use a stoning to knock some sense into it. Or at least, to beat it into submission to keep it from spawning yet more Soilwork derivations.
Fear My Thoughts are three parts Darkane, two parts Soilwork, and only a pinch of originality. They take the already-become-cliché Gothenburg death metal style and run with it, very rarely doing anything to up the ante or impress the listener. The name of the game is melodic speed metal– fast percussion, maniacal guitar riffs, thrashy beats, and harsh vocals, all set to easily accessible melodies and interspersed with anthemic choruses. Nothing new here – in fact, if you are tired same-sounding melodic death metal, Fear My Thoughts is liable to make you want to break something. And not in a good way.
It's not all bad… in fact, despite my preceding complaints, none of "Hell Sweet Hell" is actually bad. The guitars in general are admirable throughout "Hell Sweet Hell." The only truly engaging aspects of Fear My Thoughts are the axwork, and an occasional drum riff (the 'intro' to "My Delight" is an excellent example of both). There is also a notable diversity to the vocals – there are some harsh death growls, some metalcore shouts, and some nigh-melodic choruses the likes of which seem to grace contemporary bands like In Flames or Soilwork. And the presence of keyboards in several of the songs on this album are almost enough to give Fear My Thoughts a sound unique their own. "Windows for the Dead" has all the makings of a hit single – assuming, of course, the existence of a melodic death metal hit single. It is catchy, stands out amongst the rest of "Hell Sweet Hell," and perfectly encapsulates everything there is to this band. Truth be told, much of what appears during the course of "Hell Sweet Hell" is good.
But therein lies melodic death metal's biggest problem… a band can completely master the style without doing anything special. Fear My Thoughts is excellent, so long as you don't care about originality or diversity. There is nothing to warrant purchasing "Hell Sweet Hell" over "A Predator's Portrait" or "Colony." Even the aforementioned keyboards come across as an afterthought, as something thrown in by the engineer during a final mix. "Hell Sweet Hell" is so dripping with tired melodic metal clichés, I keep expecting to see a puddle underneath my CD.
By the by… have you noticed how prolific melodic death metal bands tend to be? In Flames have released something new every year since 1999 ("Colony"). Soilwork have released six albums in seven years. Fear My Thoughts have released an album, EP, or split every year since their debut EP. Perhaps one reason why so much of this music has become stale and repetitive is because the bands that craft it aren't taking enough time with each release. They are choosing quantity over quality.
Do Fear My Thoughts think they are doing anything but ripping off Soilwork and watering down a genre of extreme metal that once held promise as being a truly innovative genre of music? I can only assume that this band is simply so enamored with melodic death metal, and the bands that have come before them, that they would rather imitate than innovate. Unless Fear My Thoughts do something special, ten years from now people are going to be asking "Hell Sweet Who?"
[Lifeforce Records]
My absolute favorite melodic death metal album of all time is Darkane's debut, "Rusted Angel." The sheer magnitude of that album, from the diversity of its arrangements to the passion of its vocalist to the merits of a musical masterpiece released in what was still the infancy of melodic death metal, still amazes me to this day. And while I must admit to not having followed Darkane much since – I heard a few mp3s from "Insanity," but nothing impressed me like "Rusted Angel" – I continue to turn back towards that debut album whenever I find myself craving good melodic death metal.
But that doesn't mean I want every band to sound like Darkane.
Melodic death metal has become the new power metal – a stagnant musical style that has began to breed musicians with no desire to play anything that hasn't already been played before. Nowadays, you can't throw a rock into the air without running the risk of striking a disciple of At the Gates or late Carcass.
And "Hell Sweet Hell," the fourth studio album by the quintet Fear My Thoughts, could certainly use a stoning to knock some sense into it. Or at least, to beat it into submission to keep it from spawning yet more Soilwork derivations.
Fear My Thoughts are three parts Darkane, two parts Soilwork, and only a pinch of originality. They take the already-become-cliché Gothenburg death metal style and run with it, very rarely doing anything to up the ante or impress the listener. The name of the game is melodic speed metal– fast percussion, maniacal guitar riffs, thrashy beats, and harsh vocals, all set to easily accessible melodies and interspersed with anthemic choruses. Nothing new here – in fact, if you are tired same-sounding melodic death metal, Fear My Thoughts is liable to make you want to break something. And not in a good way.
It's not all bad… in fact, despite my preceding complaints, none of "Hell Sweet Hell" is actually bad. The guitars in general are admirable throughout "Hell Sweet Hell." The only truly engaging aspects of Fear My Thoughts are the axwork, and an occasional drum riff (the 'intro' to "My Delight" is an excellent example of both). There is also a notable diversity to the vocals – there are some harsh death growls, some metalcore shouts, and some nigh-melodic choruses the likes of which seem to grace contemporary bands like In Flames or Soilwork. And the presence of keyboards in several of the songs on this album are almost enough to give Fear My Thoughts a sound unique their own. "Windows for the Dead" has all the makings of a hit single – assuming, of course, the existence of a melodic death metal hit single. It is catchy, stands out amongst the rest of "Hell Sweet Hell," and perfectly encapsulates everything there is to this band. Truth be told, much of what appears during the course of "Hell Sweet Hell" is good.
But therein lies melodic death metal's biggest problem… a band can completely master the style without doing anything special. Fear My Thoughts is excellent, so long as you don't care about originality or diversity. There is nothing to warrant purchasing "Hell Sweet Hell" over "A Predator's Portrait" or "Colony." Even the aforementioned keyboards come across as an afterthought, as something thrown in by the engineer during a final mix. "Hell Sweet Hell" is so dripping with tired melodic metal clichés, I keep expecting to see a puddle underneath my CD.
By the by… have you noticed how prolific melodic death metal bands tend to be? In Flames have released something new every year since 1999 ("Colony"). Soilwork have released six albums in seven years. Fear My Thoughts have released an album, EP, or split every year since their debut EP. Perhaps one reason why so much of this music has become stale and repetitive is because the bands that craft it aren't taking enough time with each release. They are choosing quantity over quality.
Do Fear My Thoughts think they are doing anything but ripping off Soilwork and watering down a genre of extreme metal that once held promise as being a truly innovative genre of music? I can only assume that this band is simply so enamored with melodic death metal, and the bands that have come before them, that they would rather imitate than innovate. Unless Fear My Thoughts do something special, ten years from now people are going to be asking "Hell Sweet Who?"
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Tracklist:
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| Rating: 6.5/10 | |
| Release Date: 2005 | |
| Length: 49:29 | |
| Review By: F. Justin Ossmann | |
| Total Reviews: (1) | |
| Bands Website: Go Here | |
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